{"text":[[{"start":8.44,"text":"Interest rates on US 30-year mortgages topped 7 per cent for the first time in almost two years, as surging yields across the bond market escalate concerns over housing affordability just weeks before nationwide elections."}],[{"start":22.2,"text":"The jump in mortgage rates has been fuelled by rising yields on Treasury debt and global oil prices in response to inflationary pressures from continued crude supply disruptions caused by Donald Trump’s war in Iran. The rising debt costs may feed Americans’ sense of an affordability crisis as Republicans grasp to maintain control of the US Senate and Congress during November’s midterms."}],[{"start":46.08,"text":"The 30-year fixed interest rate for mortgages rose to 7.03 per cent on Thursday, according to Freddie Mac, reaching heights last seen in January 2025."}],[{"start":55.78,"text":"The rate increase, combined with weak existing home sales data and residential construction starts figures released over the summer, has further stoked fears around the cost of housing in the US. The mood among developers has darkened as price pressures affect homebuyer sentiment, including in cities that enjoyed a housing boom during the pandemic."}],[{"start":75.6,"text":"“For buyers and sellers, the highest mortgage rates in more than a year and a half are landing on a market that is in the midst of a slowdown,” said Realtor.com senior economist Anthony Smith. “A 7 per cent handle is as much psychological as mathematical, and it arrives at the point in the season when leverage usually shifts toward buyers.”"}],[{"start":94.62,"text":"Mortgage rates have ticked up by approximately one percentage point since the US president launched his war on Iran with Israel."}],[{"start":101.48,"text":"The Federal Reserve earlier this month raised its benchmark funds rate in an effort to stop the surge in energy prices transforming into a broader inflation crisis."}],[{"start":110.88,"text":"The recent rise in Treasury yields, with the 10-year note hitting its highest level since 2007 this week, has also put pressure on mortgage rates."}],[{"start":119.2,"text":"Trump has made housing affordability a central tenet of his administration. He has directed government-backed housing giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to buy mortgage-backed securities to lower borrowing costs and acted to stop investors from buying up single-family housing."}],[{"start":134.28,"text":"But according to FT calculations based on Zillow data, home prices across the US have risen 0.5 per cent since the president took office. Monthly rent has gone up by 4.8 per cent."}],[{"start":145.4,"text":"The 15-year mortgage rate as recorded by Freddie Mac also rose on Thursday to 6.42 per cent. That marks the highest point the loan rate has been since May 2024."}],[{"start":163.44,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1790290568_7558.mp3"}