US Fixed-Rate Mortgages Lowest on Record
Location: McLean
Author:
Eileen Fitzpatrick
Date: Friday, September 30, 2011
Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) yesterday released the results of its
Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS), coming on the heels of the
Federal Reserve's recent announcements. The conventional 30-year fixed
averaged an all-time record low at 4.01 percent; likewise the 15-year
fixed averaged an all-time record low at 3.28 percent for the week. Of
the five regions surveyed in Freddie Mac's survey, the West region
recorded the lowest average rate for the 30-year fixed dipping below
4.00 percent to 3.95 percent.
News Facts
-
30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.01 percent with an
average 0.7 point for the week ending September 29, 2011, down from
last week when it averaged 4.09 percent. Last year at this time, the
30-year FRM averaged 4.32 percent.
-
15-year FRM this week averaged 3.28 percent with an average 0.7
point, down from last week when it averaged 3.29 percent.A year ago
at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 3.75 percent.
-
1-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 2.83 percent this week with
an average 0.6 point, up from last week when it averaged 2.82
percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 3.48
percent.
Average commitment rates should be reported along with average fees
and points to reflect the total cost of obtaining the mortgage. Visit
the following links for
Regional and National Mortgage Rate Details and
Definitions.
Quotes
Attributed to Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist,
Freddie Mac.
- "Fixed mortgage rates fell to all-time record lows this week
following the
Federal Reserve's announcement of its Maturity Extension Program
and additional purchases of mortgage-backed securities. Interest
rates for ARMs, however, were nearly unchanged as the Federal
Reserve plans to sell $400 billion in short-term Treasury
securities, which serve as benchmarks for many ARMs.
- "Meanwhile, the spring and summer home-buying season gave a
boost to a number of house price indexes. The
Federal Housing Finance Agency reported that its National index
(not seasonally adjusted) rose for the fourth consecutive month in
July. Similarly, the
S&P/Case-Shiller® 20-City composite index, which has a broader
scope of properties, rose 0.9 percent between June and July with 17
of the cities experiencing positive monthly growth. Finally,
CoreLogic® reported that its index, excluding distressed sales,
increased at a 1.7 percent monthly rate for the same month."
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