Mortgage rates near all-time lows (again)
(MoneyWatch) Mortgage rates continue to hover near record lows according to data from Freddie Mac, released Thursday. The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has been below 4 percent all but once this year, and the 15-year FRM has been below 3 percent since the last week of May.
The economic turmoil in Europe, combined with the troubles at home, are keeping a lid on rates.
Mortgage rates for the week ending Sept. 13 are as follows:
30-year FRM averaged 3.55 percent this week, unchanged from last week. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM average was 4.09 percent.
15-year FRM this week averaged 2.85 percent, down slightly from last week's average of 2.86 percent. One year ago, the 15-year FRM averaged 3.30 percent.
5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 2.72 percent this week, down from last week when it averaged 2.75 percent. A year ago at this time, the 5-year ARM averaged 2.99 percent.
1-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 2.61 percent this week, the same as last week. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 2.81 percent.
"Despite a lackluster August employment report, Treasury bond yields and mortgage rates were little changed this week with the financial markets speculating on further monetary stimulus from the Federal Reserve," Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist for Freddie Mac, said in a press release.
Expect mortgage rates to hold near all-time lows for a while longer. If you have the opportunity to refinance, take advantage of these low rates by locking in soon.
