Rate on 30-year mortgage falls to record 3.87 pct.

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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.
/ U9 C9 L2 i" V5 L  qMortgage 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. + H  D& b7 f# I0 `# V0 c! k: C- t
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. 9 C+ \# I/ J- ]  L& j; j
Mortgage rates tend to track the yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which fell below 1.9 percent this week.
+ e4 d$ r! o) p* f# U- dRates 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.
% L+ e2 z$ f( N3 @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.
$ e& [; i' p3 D) B( T8 O1 JSales of previously occupied homes were dismal last year. New-home sales in 2011 were the worst on records going back half a century.
7 T5 i/ N+ C6 @; H9 ?Builders are hopeful that the low rates could boost sales next year. But so far, they have had a minimal impact.
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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.
& B6 }  o$ n* m5 o$ y& ~; yTo calculate the average rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country Monday through Wednesday of each week.
8 g  J! T- T+ yThe 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.
  l2 N- N5 a" _# M. B( QThe 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.
- F$ I9 ~, T$ ~9 I/ IFor 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.
+ n# O. w' o* w) C1 hThe 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.