Mortgage Rates Dropping 2026: 6.23% for Third Week — Should You Buy a House Before the FOMC?

# Mortgage Rates Dropping 2026: 6.23% for the Third Straight Week — Should You Buy a House Before the FOMC Meets?

> **Quick answer:** The 30-year fixed mortgage rate has fallen to 6.23% for the third consecutive week — the lowest spring rate since 2023, and nearly a full percentage point below the 7.2% peak seen during the Iran-Hormuz crisis earlier this month. Freddie Mac reports rising purchase applications, improving pending home sales, and the first real momentum in the spring buying market in years. But the FOMC meets April 30 and a rate hold is nearly certain. Whether to buy now, lock before the Fed statement, or wait for a potential sub-6% rate later this year is the defining financial decision of spring 2026.

Mortgage rates dropping in 2026 was supposed to be a slow, grinding process. Instead, buyers are watching a genuine three-week slide unfold in real time — and the question now is not whether rates have improved, but whether this window stays open. With the Federal Reserve meeting April 30 and Chairman Jerome Powell making clear he is in no hurry to cut, what you do in the next 72 hours could matter more than anything you do for the rest of the year.

## The Three-Week Slide: What the Numbers Actually Say

According to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey for the week ending April 23, 2026, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate sits at **6.23%** — down from 6.30% the prior week, and down sharply from the 7.2% average logged during the peak of the Iran-Hormuz oil shock in early April.

The 15-year fixed rate followed the same path, falling to **5.58%** from 5.65% the prior week. A year ago, the 30-year was at 6.81% — meaning buyers today are locking in rates nearly 60 basis points below what spring 2025 buyers paid.