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Fixed-rate mortgages hit record low: Freddie Mac
30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.71% this week
By Amy Hoak, MarketWatch
Last Update: 10:50 AM ET Dec 3, 2009
CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- Average rates for 30-year and 15-year fixed mortgages fell for the fifth consecutive week, reaching all-time lows, Freddie Mac's chief economist said on Thursday.
"In addition, interest rates on 30-year and 15-year fixed mortgages thus far in 2009 averaged one percentage point below their respective average in 2008," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac chief economist, in a news release.
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.71% for the week ending Dec. 3 -- the lowest it has been since Freddie Mac began its weekly survey in 1971. The mortgage is down from 4.78% last week and 5.53% a year ago.
Fifteen-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 4.27% this week, a low since Freddie Mac began tracking it in 1991. The mortgage averaged 4.29% last week and 5.77% a year ago.
One-year Treasury-indexed adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 4.25% this week; they haven't been lower since the week ending June 30, 2005, when they averaged 4.24%. The ARM averaged 4.35% last week and 5.02% a year ago.
But the 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid ARM rose slightly, averaging 4.19% this week, up from 4.18% last week. It averaged 5.77% a year ago.
To obtain the rates, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage required payment of an average 0.7 point and the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage as well as both ARMs required payment of an average 0.6 point.
"Low mortgage rates and the cumulative decline in house prices have contributed to an extremely affordable housing market and helped spur home sales this year," Nothaft said.
"For instance, total new and existing home sales in October were 36% higher than their January low on a seasonally adjusted, annualized rate, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Association of Realtors. The NAR also reported that pending existing home sales rose for the ninth straight month in October, representing the longest consecutive gain since the series began in 2001." Read the latest data on pending home sales.
In a separate survey released on Wednesday, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported that mortgage applications filed for the week ending Nov. 27 rose a seasonally adjusted 2.1%, compared with the week before. Read about MBA survey results.
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