Mortgage rates mixed; 30-year loan rises to 2.80%

FILE - A "sale pending" sign is posted outside a single family home in a residential neighborhood, Wednesday, July 14, 2021, in Derry, N.H. Mortgage rates were mixed last week. The key 30-year home loan remained below 3% for the fifth straight week amid continued concern over the surging delta coronavirus variant and the progress of economic recovery. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reports that the average for the 30-year mortgage edged up to 2.80% from 2.78% last week.  (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)
FILE - A "sale pending" sign is posted outside a single family home in a residential neighborhood, Wednesday, July 14, 2021, in Derry, N.H. Mortgage rates were mixed last week. The key 30-year home loan remained below 3% for the fifth straight week amid continued concern over the surging delta coronavirus variant and the progress of economic recovery. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reports that the average for the 30-year mortgage edged up to 2.80% from 2.78% last week. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) - Mortgage rates were mixed last week. The key 30-year home loan remained below 3 percent for the fifth straight week amid continued concern over the surging delta coronavirus variant and the progress of economic recovery.

Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reported Thursday the average for the 30-year mortgage edged up to 2.80 percent from 2.78 percent last week.

The benchmark rate, which reached a peak this year of 3.18 perceent in April, stood at 2.99 percent a year ago.

The rate for a 15-year loan, a popular option among homeowners refinancing their mortgages, fell to 2.10 percent from 2.12 percent last week.

In a fresh sign the U.S. has enjoyed a sustained recovery from the pandemic recession, the government reported Thursday the economy grew at a solid 6.5 percent annual rate last quarter. The total size of the economy has now surpassed its pre-pandemic level.

Another positive government report showed the number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits slid last week, with jobless claims dropping by 24,000, to 400,000.