Mortgage rates climb again, hurting demand further

Mortgage rates marched higher for the sixth straight week while purchase demand continues to decline in the stagnant housing market.

Freddie Mac's latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey, released Thursday, showed that the average rate on the benchmark 30-year fixed mortgage surged to 6.79% from last week's reading of 6.72%. The average rate on a 30-year loan was 7.50% a year ago.

"It is clear purchase demand is very sensitive to mortgage rates in the current market environment," said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac's chief economist.