The average interest rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgage loans in the United States has dropped to its lowest level in nearly a year.

Freddie Mac, the mortgage finance institution, announced on Thursday that the average interest rate on 30-year loans declined this week to 6.3%, down from 6.34% last week and 6.32% during the same week last year.

This slight decrease returns the average rate to the level it was two weeks ago, following a series of declines that brought housing loan borrowing costs to their lowest since October 2024, according to the Associated Press.

Meanwhile, the interest rate on 15-year loans, favored by homeowners looking to refinance their current loans to reduce interest, fell to 5.53% this week, compared to 5.55% last week and 5.41% during the same period last year.

Mortgage rates are influenced by several factors, including interest rate policy decisions made by the U.S. Federal Reserve and bond market investors’ expectations for the economy and inflation.

Mortgage loan interest rates are also affected by the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasury bonds, which lenders use as a benchmark to set mortgage interest rates.