rewrite this title Weekly Mortgage Rates Dip; Fed Rate Hike Unlikely After Jobs Data – NerdWallet

Mortgage rates fell a little this week, as mixed economic data makes the Federal Reserve’s decision-making a little trickier.

The average 30-year mortgage rate fell five basis points to 6.28% APR. A basis point is one one-hundredth of a percentage point, and we calculate our weekly average using daily APRs provided by Zillow over the past five business days.

However, the June jobs report dropped this morning, showing that the labor market might not be quite as strong as expected. The U.S. gained about half as many jobs (57,000) as had been forecast last month (115,000).

Fed-watchers have adjusted their predictions, with a majority projecting that central bankers won’t raise borrowing rates until September at the earliest. Mortgage rates often rise or fall according to anticipated Fed rate moves.

Here are the typical numbers that home shoppers are currently contending with.

Note: This data comes from Zillow, the National Association of Realtors, Realtor.com and compiled research from the Harvard University Joint Center for Housing Studies.

If a borrower were to get a mortgage today with these example figures, their total monthly mortgage payment would be approximately $3,400.

If these numbers seem intimidating, one way to make mortgage expenses manageable is to strengthen your financial profile before applying for a home loan.

For instance, borrowers with higher credit scores and relatively large down payments are more likely to receive lower rate offers. It’s often much easier for repeat borrowers to make sizable down payments compared to first-time buyers, since they usually have cash from their past home sale to bring to closing.

Lenders typically also reserve their best rates for borrowers with low amounts of existing debt (below 36%).

About the author

Taylor Getler is a home and mortgages writer for NerdWallet. Her work has been featured in outlets such as MarketWatch, Yahoo Finance, MSN and Nasdaq. Taylor is enthusiastic about financial literacy and helping consumers make smart, informed choices with their money.