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RatesOctober 12, 20264 min read

Mortgage rates: 7.28% in the week to Oct 1, 2026

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 7.28% in the week to October 1, 2026, according to Freddie Mac.

By the HavenScore Editorial Team

Rates
Mortgage rates: 7.28% in the week to Oct 1, 2026

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 7.28% in the week to October 1, 2026, according to Freddie Mac.

The mortgage rates are Freddie Mac's weekly averages for fixed-rate home loans of each term, drawn from the loan applications lenders submit to it. A fixed rate holds for the life of the loan.

The 30-year rate for the week to October 1, 2026 was 0.25 percentage points higher than the week before, when it was 7.03%, according to Freddie Mac.

Through the week to October 1, 2026, the 30-year rate rose for 6 weeks in a row.

What it costs

At the average 30-year fixed rate of 7.28% in the week to October 1, 2026, principal and interest on a home bought for $289,000 with 20% down came to $1,582 a month, before taxes and insurance; $289,000 is the typical home value of the median scored U.S. ZIP in August 2026, among 26,291 scored ZIPs (based on Freddie Mac rates and Zillow ZIP-level data).

The payment is the monthly principal and interest on a home priced at the typical home value of the median scored U.S. ZIP code, the one with as many scored ZIPs valued above it as below it, with a fifth of the price paid at purchase and the rest borrowed over thirty years at the week's average fixed rate. It leaves out property taxes and insurance.

A year before the week to October 1, 2026, the average rate of 6.34% in the week to October 2, 2025 put the same loan at $1,437 a month; in the week to October 1, 2026 it was $145 higher (based on Freddie Mac rates and Zillow ZIP-level data).

The longer view

The 30-year rate in the week to October 1, 2026 was 0.94 percentage points higher than the 6.34% of the week to October 2, 2025, according to Freddie Mac.

30-year fixed mortgage rate, weekly
5.50%6.00%6.50%7.00%7.50%7.28%DecFebAprJunAugOct5.50%6.00%6.50%7.00%7.50%7.28%DecFebAprJunAugOct

30-year fixed mortgage rate, weekly, week to October 16, 2025 to week to October 1, 2026: lowest 5.98% (week to February 26, 2026), highest 7.28% (week to October 1, 2026), latest 7.28% (week to October 1, 2026).

Freddie Mac · week to October 1, 2026

In the week to October 1, 2026, Freddie Mac's average 15-year fixed rate was 6.60%, 0.68 percentage points below the 30-year rate of 7.28%.

The monthly average

For September 2026 as a whole, the 30-year fixed rate averaged 6.86%, according to Freddie Mac.

30-year fixed mortgage rate, monthly average
5.50%6.00%6.50%7.50%8.00%6.86%Jan 2024Jan 2025Jan 20265.50%6.00%6.50%7.50%8.00%6.86%Jan 2024Jan 2025Jan 2026

30-year fixed mortgage rate, monthly average, October 2023 to September 2026: lowest 6.05% (February 2026), highest 7.62% (October 2023), latest 6.86% (September 2026).

Freddie Mac · September 2026

The market backdrop

There were 1,161,615 active listings across the U.S. in September 2026, according to Realtor.com.

Active listings count the homes for sale on Realtor.com during the month, leaving out listings already marked as pending sale. It counts homes on offer, not sales.

Compared with 1,102,006 in September 2025, U.S. active listings in September 2026 were up 5.4%, according to Realtor.com.

The median U.S. listing spent 61 days on the market in September 2026.

Days on market is the median number of days a Realtor.com listing spends on the market, from the day it is listed until it closes or is withdrawn.

In September 2026, 20.8% of U.S. listings had a price cut, according to Realtor.com.

The share of listings with a price cut is the part of Realtor.com's active listings where sellers cut the asking price at least once during the month.

On a scale from −100 (buyers) to +100 (sellers), the U.S. HavenScore balance was −2 in September 2026, in our Balanced band.

The HavenScore balance reads signals such as inventory, time on market and the share of listings with a price cut on one scale, from buyers at one end to sellers at the other. A reading below zero favors buyers, and one above zero favors sellers.

By region

Of the four Census regions, the Northeast had the highest average HavenScore balance in September 2026: +8 across its 5,053 scored ZIPs, weighted by population, in our Balanced band.

The regions are the four Census regions, which group the states and the District of Columbia as the Census Bureau defines them. Each region's figures cover the scored ZIP codes in its states.

Regional and U.S. figures in the table are averages across scored ZIP codes, weighted by population, so each ZIP counts in proportion to its residents. They are not national series, so the U.S. row can differ from a median or a national figure for the same month.

By Census region: averages across scored ZIPs, weighted by population
AreaScored ZIPsBalance, Sep 20261-year change in typical home value, year to Aug 2026
West4,207−27+0.6%
South9,111−27+0.2%
Midwest7,920+2+3.7%
Northeast5,053+8+3.6%
U.S. (all scored ZIPs)26,291−15+1.6%

HavenScore balance · September 2026; based on Zillow ZIP-level data · August 2026

How to read these figures

Each figure here names its own week or month, since each source publishes on its own schedule. A figure describes that period, not the date this article was published.

HavenScore commentary · informational only · Not financial advice
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