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

super

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.
0 G' h3 a3 E' ]! g  oMortgage 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: p) y8 h9 A; v# F; ^& o( ]
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.
  p: N- _) J3 I  b. l2 oMortgage rates tend to track the yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which fell below 1.9 percent this week. ) U4 }! D0 c6 U- {  i) \
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.
( a# H9 s* \4 M- |& P% e4 X; s: 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. 9 ]- J# T  Z- B- u) B
Sales of previously occupied homes were dismal last year. New-home sales in 2011 were the worst on records going back half a century.
6 R6 U9 r' }! H5 e+ E. ABuilders are hopeful that the low rates could boost sales next year. But so far, they have had a minimal impact. 5 h9 v; u3 y2 q  e

0 k0 b* A, R0 z3 B+ B; V' g2 TMortgage applications have risen slightly over the past four weeks, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. But they are coming off extremely low levels.
, B* s3 j! j' b% T' B+ e- C7 F; N/ qTo calculate the average rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country Monday through Wednesday of each week.
$ P: Y: l+ f, ?! Z. C& Y% S7 jThe 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.   T! G3 p, j4 G
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.
, \8 ^* W3 O: _  |, t! \' @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.
# S$ d+ t: g+ m0 W5 NThe 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.