Aspiring home buyers saw signs of hope for greater affordability this week as the average 30-year mortgage rate dropped to 6.49%, Freddie Mac reports. Recent economic data suggests mortgage rates have peaked after surpassing 7% in the second week of November.

Freddie Mac reports the following national averages with mortgage rates for the week ending Dec. 1:

30-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 6.49%, dropping from last week’s 6.58% average. Last year at this time, 30-year rates averaged 3.11%.

15-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 5.76%, also falling from last week’s 5.90% average. A year ago, 15-year rates averaged 2.39%.

Source: Freddie Mac