US long-term mortgage rates fall; 30-year loan at 3.73%

WASHINGTON — U.S. long-term mortgage rates fell this week. It was the seventh decline in the past nine weeks for the key 30-year, fixed-rate loan, which reached its lowest level since November 2016.

Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac says the average rate on the benchmark 30-year mortgage fell to 3.73% from 3.84% last week. By contrast, a year ago the rate stood at 4.55%.

The average rate for 15-year, fixed-rate home loans slipped this week to 3.16% from 3.25%.