Mortgage rates drop to lowest level this summer

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1. Mortgage rates drop to lowest level this summer

Mortgage rates fell for the third week in a row to their lowest level since April, following a weaker-than-expected July jobs report and downward revisions to early 2025 employment data.

Freddie Mac reported the average 30-year fixed rate at 6.63% for the week ending Aug. 7, down nine basis points from the prior week but still 16 basis points above last year’s level. The 15-year average slipped to 5.75%.

The drop followed a sharp decline in 10-year Treasury yields—often a benchmark for mortgage rates—which fell from 4.36% to 4.22% after the employment data spurred a flight to bonds. Other trackers, including Zillow and Lender Price, similarly reported notable week-over-week declines.

2. Massachusetts AG reaches $2M deal with Cypress Loan Servicing over foreclosure, collection violations

Massachusetts AG said Aug. 7 the state reached a $2 million settlement with Cypress Loan Servicing—formerly Rushmore Loan Management—resolving allegations the servicer violated the state’s foreclosure-prevention law and debt-collection rules.

Cypress will pay $2 million, fund restitution for certain borrowers who lost homes, implement business-practice changes, and submit compliance reports; the company denied wrongdoing.

The AG alleged Cypress required large upfront payments without an affordability test to access loan mods, failed to issue timely assessments and mandated disclosures, and made debt-collection calls beyond the state cap of two per week.

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3. More Nuggets

🔥 These are the 10 hottest ZIP codes in the U.S. (Fortune)

🔔 HUD auctions 1,600 HECMs with additional sales planned. (Fed Register)

💰 UBS pays $300 million to settle Credit Suisse mortgage case. (Reuters)

💼 Trump names Stephen Miran to Fed as White House fights for lower rates. (Axios)

🚀 Guild Mortgage posts strongest quarter since 2021 and prepares for bayview acquisition. (NMP)

📊 With Hsieh in the driver’s seat, loanDepot posts revenue of $283M. (HousingWire)

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4. Chase Home Lending is offering a discounted rate promotion

JPMorgan Chase’s home-lending unit launched a nationwide, limited-time “rate sale” on purchase mortgages, trimming interest rates by as much as 25 basis points through Aug. 18, the bank said.

Discounts apply to any borrower who qualifies for a loan and can be combined with relationship pricing, “Lock & Shop,” and the DreaMaker program (3% minimum down).

Some buyers may also receive up to $5,000 in grants in eligible neighborhoods. Rates can be locked with a one-time option to float down if market rates fall. Chase recently cut FHA rates by up to 50 bps for some borrowers and offered a refinance discount in February.

5. Freddie Mac extends CHOICEHome to single-section manufactured homes, effective immediately

Freddie Mac expanded its CHOICEHome program to allow conventional financing for modern single-section (single-wide) factory-built homes, effective Aug. 6, 2025, aiming to widen affordable-housing supply.

Loans will be purchased by Freddie Mac and appraised using methods similar to site-built properties; the move extends existing 3% down-payment options—previously limited to multi-section units—to single-section homes.

Freddie says eligible homes typically cost about $200,000 including land, well below many site-built comparables, and must meet standards such as permanent foundations and energy-efficient designs.

☀️ You’re all caught up. See you on Monday!

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