Rubbish Check
ABC News Business (AP wire) · 6 August 2026 source

“Mortgage rates rise for 5th straight week, hitting levels not seen since 2025”

R2/ 10
Lightly altered
Rubbish Rating — 1 = base fact, 10 = pure rubbish
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In short
Rubbish Talk rates ABC News/AP's claim that mortgage rates hit levels "not seen since 2025" a 2/10 because Freddie Mac's own data confirms the 30-year rate rose to 6.69%, its fifth straight weekly increase and highest since late July 2025, exactly as reported.
The Verdict
Base fact, lightly altered. The headline's "not seen since 2025" phrasing is vaguer than the article body's precise "highest level in just over a year," but it doesn't overstate or misrepresent the underlying data. This is about as clean as wire-service headline writing gets.

What actually happened

Freddie Mac's weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey showed the 30-year fixed rate climbing for a fifth consecutive week, and the 15-year rate ticking down. The rise is tied to elevated Treasury yields, which have stayed above pre-conflict levels amid an ongoing US-Iran war and inflation concerns.

Key facts

  • 30-year fixed rate: rose to 6.69%, up slightly from 6.66% reported last week, confirmed independently as the highest level since late July 2025.
  • By comparison, the average rate was 6.63% at this time last year, and hadn't been higher than its current level since late July in 2025.
  • 15-year fixed rate: fell slightly this week, averaging 6.01%, down from 6.04% last week, versus 5.75% a year ago.
  • 10-year Treasury yield: was 4.65% as of midday Thursday, up from 3.97% in late February before the war. An independent market tracker put it at 4.67% on August 6, 2026, a 0.06 percentage point increase from the previous session.
  • Cause cited: rates have been mostly rising this year as the U.S. war with Iran has fueled expectations for hotter inflation as crude oil prices soared.

What to watch for

  • Watch whether easing oil prices (the article notes a partial de-escalation) start pulling Treasury yields, and mortgage rates, back down in coming weeks.
  • The 15-year rate's small dip could reverse quickly if refinancing demand or yields shift; it's not yet a trend.
  • Fed commentary on rate policy will be the next lever: any signal of a pause versus hike will move the 10-year and, with it, mortgage pricing.
About this scoreThe R-Score is Rubbish Talk's editorial opinion on how far a headline's framing sits from what the underlying facts support. It is a judgement about presentation and emphasis, not an allegation that any outlet has acted dishonestly. Every figure we rely on is linked under Receipts so you can check it yourself.
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