Many Americans have been priced out of purchasing a home or making a move for years now amid elevated mortgage rates, sky-high home prices, and squeezed budgets due to inflation.

Mortgage rates rose to the highest level in nearly two months. The average rate on a standard 30-year fixed mortgage rose to 6.44%, according to a survey of lenders released Thursday by the mortgage-finance company Freddie Mac.

A strong economy drove mortgage rates higher in the past week but it's still an advantageous market for consumers in some ways, according to Freddie Mac.

Mortgage rates are ticking up, even after the Federal Reserve has started cutting interest rates. Here's why, and where rates — and home sales — could go from here.