Mortgage rates turn upward

Snapping a four-week string of declines, mortgage rates rose sharply. The average interest rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages for the week ended March 21 was 5.79%, up from the prior week’s 5.61%, the lowest in more than 40 years, according to Freddie Mac. The rates for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages also rose to 5.11%, up from 4.93% the week before. On one-year adjustable rate mortgages, rates averaged 3.75%, up from 3.68%.