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.
7 a( Y) L7 g, P1 W& O$ N: b0 \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.
( B% T) t' E( J0 {4 s" n& ^0 j* ZThe 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.
' u2 Z; }) B5 l' }+ zMortgage rates tend to track the yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which fell below 1.9 percent this week.   q( S% [7 Q) ^5 a) 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.
/ y: R+ ~; j3 u; u3 J$ Z" T- H: Q8 XHigh 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.
7 q/ B3 g  Q" l9 h+ M8 s  ]8 |Sales of previously occupied homes were dismal last year. New-home sales in 2011 were the worst on records going back half a century.
2 j0 Z; O. z, i) B% ]; mBuilders are hopeful that the low rates could boost sales next year. But so far, they have had a minimal impact. $ r& K1 ]) Y8 v, m; N

9 G* B) W& P  X( qMortgage applications have risen slightly over the past four weeks, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. But they are coming off extremely low levels. / ^+ q! C& w# [# h
To calculate the average rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country Monday through Wednesday of each week.
7 ^& p. K) G7 U: L& ^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.
/ E2 K8 u+ I1 {2 k6 z1 tThe 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.
$ l9 O% f$ _6 h- U( v0 \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.
6 h& ^5 O( `) N& C' q! jThe 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.