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. ! J# G# Q- D% E0 }/ x
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. $ T) H0 E$ P$ ~  t1 }
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.
# a# F, g8 S* C1 t( cMortgage rates tend to track the yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which fell below 1.9 percent this week.
4 O5 a% v3 }6 ~# tRates 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.
9 {4 j- Z9 o. A  z3 hHigh 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. 8 t" K. L. ^* y5 @! w( S  o
Sales of previously occupied homes were dismal last year. New-home sales in 2011 were the worst on records going back half a century. % u, ^5 h( I1 N( J  ]5 y+ l/ k
Builders are hopeful that the low rates could boost sales next year. But so far, they have had a minimal impact. ! I  }% W# k  d- e" J
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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.
- v; D9 W, f, q, ?To calculate the average rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country Monday through Wednesday of each week.
# d, o) z7 A9 n+ l* S6 H: hThe 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. ( v6 }9 G# ^# K
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.
9 R7 X3 F( [' F1 FFor 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.   K8 W3 G3 l8 b  x: D; a
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.