Adjustable-rate mortgages are making a comeback

Adjustable-rate mortgages, which got a bad name during the housing meltdown of the late 2000s, are gaining some traction again as would-be homebuyers face the highest rates in decades for fixed-rate mortgages.

As rates for the 30-year fixed-rate loan climb to levels not seen in 23 years, would-be homebuyers are looking for alternatives.

The most popular kind of mortgage - a 30-year, fixed-rate loan - reached an average rate of 7.67% last week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Meanwhile, the average rate for a kind of adjustable rate mortgage - a 5/1 ARM - dropped to 6.33% from 6.49%.

(Freddie Mac, which provides an average that CNN covers weekly, does not track interest rates for adjustable rate mortgages).

"Mortgage applications increased for the first time in three weeks [last week], pushed higher by a 15% jump in ARM applications," said Bob Broeksmit, CEO of MBA. "With mortgage rates well above 7%, some prospective homebuyers are turning to ARMs to lower their monthly payment in the short term amidst these high mortgage rates."

Leading up to the foreclosure crisis, home buyers signed on for teaser rates that then reset and caused monthly payments to balloon above borrowers' ability to pay them. Now, stricter regulations and more transparency have made ARMs less risky than they used to be.