Mortgage rates rise slightly on weekly basis

But rates still near historical lows

Interest rates for fixed mortgages increased slightly week-over-week but still remain near historical lows, Freddie Mac said in its weekly survey of the mortgage market.

Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey for the week ending October 25, 2012 revealed that mortgage rates for adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) stayed relatively even on a weekly basis, while fixed-rate mortgages saw slight upward movement.

Average rates for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages rose to 3.41 percent, up from 3.37 percent the previous week, and shorter-term 15-year fixed mortgages increased from 2.66 percent to 2.72 percent.

One year ago at this time, 30-year fixed mortgages averaged 4.10 percent, while 15-year fixed mortgages averaged 3.38 percent.

Meanwhile, 5-year ARMs stayed even week-over-week at an average of 2.75 percent, and 1-year ARMs fell slightly to an average of 2.59 percent after averaging 2.60 percent one week earlier.

Average rates for 5-year ARMs stood at 3.08 percent one year ago at this time, while 1-year ARMs averaged 2.90 percent at that time.

Despite the minor upward movement in rates week-over-week, interest rates for most mortgage loan types are still close to all-time record lows, Freddie Mac said.

“Mortgage rates remained relatively unchanged this week and should continue to support the housing market and mortgage refinance,” Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist at Freddie Mac, said in a statement. “Existing home sales in September eased slightly to 4.75 million but was the second strongest annualized pace since May 2010. Moreover, new home sales rose to the most since April 2010.”

Posted in: Mortgage, Mortgage Rates, Refinance, Refinance Rates

Mortgage News: This article was published on 10-29-2012 at 8:30 am.

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