标题: Rate on 30-year mortgage falls to record 3.87 pct. [打印本页] 作者: super 时间: 2012-2-2 12:21 标题: Rate on 30-year mortgage falls to record 3.87 pct.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage fell this week to a record low, the ninth time that has happened in the last year. Even with the cheapest rates in history, the housing market remains depressed. % u$ Q3 Z. N6 u
Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the rate on the 30-year loan dropped to 3.87 percent this week. That below the previous record of 3.88 hit two weeks ago. - k- ?. e: d: V( b" `; w% T( D" |The average on the 15-year fixed mortgage fell to 3.14 percent, also a record low. Records for mortgage rates date back to the 1950s. $ y8 c4 o6 _) _" z" O: \# B
Mortgage rates tend to track the yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which fell below 1.9 percent this week. 2 o- l) ^$ \7 {2 ^5 m' r9 u
Rates have been low for more than a year, and the average rate on the 30-year loan has hovered near 4 percent for more than three months. Yet few people can afford to buy a home or qualify for a loan. Those who can have already done so. # B' _+ U" A3 G# M) c
High unemployment and scant wage gains have made it harder for many people to qualify for loans. Many don't want to sink money into a home that they fear could lose value over the next few years. : [" u8 ~' v- h" `$ mSales of previously occupied homes were dismal last year. New-home sales in 2011 were the worst on records going back half a century. ) g# g! \' `/ S0 y% \
Builders are hopeful that the low rates could boost sales next year. But so far, they have had a minimal impact. 0 ]6 N9 ~) P) b3 t O1 C
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Mortgage applications have risen slightly over the past four weeks, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. But they are coming off extremely low levels. 0 e) a& ?1 @2 }% v9 I
To calculate the average rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country Monday through Wednesday of each week. # a7 p. |6 Y/ Q: y5 U# g/ P
The average rates don't include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount. 6 C) X! B( L9 I
The average fee for the 30-year loan rose to 0.8 from 0.7; the average on the 15-year fixed mortgage was unchanged at 0.8. ; M& U: Y7 m: C3 j' v3 p) I
For the five-year adjustable loan, the average rate fell to 2.80 percent from 2.85 percent. The average on the one-year adjustable loan rose to 2.76 percent from 2.74 percent. 5 C& d* t. H: Z; |+ N5 b
The average fee on the five-year adjustable loan rose was unchanged at 0.7; the average on the one-year adjustable-rate loan was unchanged at 0.6.
