Mortgage Rates Drop

Published February 20, 2026

Freddie Mac released its latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey on Thursday, February 19. The survey showed the 30-year mortgage rate decreasing to the lowest level in almost four years.

This week, the 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 6.01%, down from last week’s average of 6.09%. Last year at this time, the 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 6.85%.

The 15-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 5.35% this week, down from last week’s 5.44%. During the same week last year, the 15-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 6.04%.

“Mortgage rates dropped again this week, now down to their lowest level since September of 2022,” said chief economist at Freddie Mac, Sam Khater. “This lower rate environment is not only improving affordability for prospective homebuyers, it is also strengthening the financial position of homeowners. Over the past year, refinance application activity has more than doubled, enabling many recent buyers to reduce their annual mortgage payments by thousands of dollars.”

Based on published national averages, the savings rate was 0.39% as of 2/17. The one-year CD averaged 1.55%.

Editor’s Note: The publicly available financial information is offered as a helpful and informative service to our friends. This article is not an endorsement of any company, product or service.