Fixed mortgage rates hit two-month high

Average rates for 30-year fixed mortgages were the highest Monday that they have been since mid-September. The average rate, 4.5 percent, was also a boost from last year at this time, when the average was 3.36 percent, according to data from Mortgage News Daily.

As reports on new home sales and jobless claims are due later this week, investors are wary, experts told CNBC.

“Investors are hesitant to move lower in rates ahead of the important data coming up throughout the week,” said Matthew Graham, chief operating officer of Mortgage News Daily.

Home prices grew by 12 percent in September year-over-year, the highest of any month since May 2008, data from CoreLogic show.

“The slowdown in price appreciation is positive for the housing market as almost half the states are now within 10 percent of their respective historical price peaks,” Mark Fleming, chief economist at CoreLogic, told CNBC. [CNBC] — Mark Maurer