Rates on 30-year mortgages fell to 6.65% from 6.67% last week, while rates on 15-year mortgages rose to 5.89% from 5.83% last week, Freddie Mac said.

NEW YORK — The average rate on a 30-year mortgage in the U.S. fell slightly this week, a welcome reversal for homebuyers in what is traditionally the busiest time of the year for the housing market.

The rate fell to 6.65% from 6.67% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.79%.

This is the first decline in the average rate after rising two weeks in a row. The average rate has been mostly trending lower since mid-January, when it climbed to just over 7% — a welcome trend for aspiring homebuyers struggling to afford a home after years of soaring home prices.

Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners refinancing their home loans, rose this week, however, pushing the average rate to 5.89% from 5.83% last week. A year ago, it averaged 6.11%, Freddie Mac said.

Mortgage rates are influenced by several factors, including bond market investors’ expectations for future inflation, global demand for U.S. Treasurys and the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy decisions.

The overall decline this year in the average rate on a 30-year mortgage loosely follows the moves in the 10-year Treasury yield, which lenders use as a guide to pricing home loans.

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