Long-term US mortgage rates edge up this week to 4.72%

By MATT OTT
AP Business Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Average long-term U.S. mortgage rates edged up again this week as the key 30-year loan rate hit its highest mark in more than three years. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the average rate on the 30-year loan this week rose to 4.72% from 4.67% last week. The average rate has jumped 1.5% in the past three months, the fastest three-month rise since May of 1994. The increases in home loan rates come a few weeks after the Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate by a quarter point in an attempt to tamp down four-decade high inflation.