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Friday, Jul. 19, 2024

Have mortgage rates quadrupled since President Joe Biden took office?

Tom Kertscher, Wisconsin Watch
no

Mortgage rates are roughly 2.5 times higher than when President Joe Biden took office.

Former President Donald Trump claimed “mortgage rates have quadrupled” during his nomination acceptance speech July 18, 2024, at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

The U.S. average weekly rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage was 2.77% for the week ending Jan. 21, 2021, a day after Biden was inaugurated.

The latest rate, for the week ending July 18, 2024, was 6.77% — about 2.5 times higher.

On an annual basis, the rate was 6.8% in 2023, more than double the 3.11% in 2020.

The peak rate under Biden, 7.79% for the week ending Oct. 26, 2023, was about three times higher than in early 2021.

Several factors influence mortgage rates, including the Federal Reserve raising short-term bank lending rates to cool inflation.

Home prices are also up. In Wisconsin, they have increased nearly 30% under Biden.

See a full discussion of this at Wisconsin Watch

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