The average U.S. 30-year fixed mortgage rate reached 6.71%, according to Freddie Mac, prolonging financial pressure on homeowners who bought or refinanced after rates moved above 6%. Redfin's analysis of FHFA data found that, late last year, homeowners with mortgage rates above 6% outnumbered those with rates below 3% for the first time since the pandemic. Mortgage rates generally move with the 10-year Treasury yield and had briefly declined as inflation appeared to approach the Federal Reserve's 2% target, before reversing after U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran. The higher rates have left many borrowers unable to achieve the roughly one-percentage-point reduction financial advisers commonly view as sufficient to justify refinancing. The rate environment is weighing on affordability, household budgets and refinancing demand, which has remained low as mortgage rates stayed above 6%.