"This week, mortgage rates decreased to their lowest level in over two months," says Freddie Mac Chief Economist Sam Khater. "The drop in mortgage rates, combined with modestly improving inventory, is an encouraging sign for consumers in the market to buy a home."

Today, the mortgage interest rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage is 6.64%, according to the Mortgage Research Center. On a 15-year fixed mortgage, the average rate is 5.72%, and the average rate on a 30-year jumbo mortgage is 7.

Despite the recent improvement, things were better in September, when the 30-year average plunged to a two-year low of 5.89% (the cheapest Friday average being 6.03%). But rates bolted higher in October and November and then took additional steps higher around Christmas and in January.