What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – May 6, 2013

Mortgage rates fell last week and approached or reached record low levels. According to Freddie Mac, the average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage (FRM) fell from 3.40 percent to 3.35 percent. Average rates for a 15-year FRM moved from 2.61percent to 2.56 percent. Average rates for a 5/1 adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) fell to 2.56 from last week's average of 2.58 percent Discount points for last week's mortgage rates ranged from 0.7percent for 30 and 15 year FRM loans to 0.5 percent for a 5/1 ARM. Rock-bottom mortgage rates can offset the impact of rising home prices. Last…
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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – April 29, 2013

Mortgage rates fell again last week and are again near record lows. According to Freddie Mac, the average rate for a 15-year fixed rate mortgage did achieve a record low of 2.61 percent as compared to 3.1 percent one year ago. The average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage fell to 3.40 percent and near the record low of 3.31 percent. Low mortgage rates are helping homeowners with refinancing and are boosting housing markets as more buyers can qualify for mortgage loans. Home Values Continue To Rise Last week's economic news was mixed; The Federal Housing Finance Agency, which…
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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – April 22, 2013

Mortgage rates fell for the third consecutive week. According to Freddie Mac, the average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage fell by two basis points to 3.41 percent as compared to last week's 3.43 percent and 3.90 percent year-over-year. The average rate for a 15-year fixed rate mortgage was 2.64 percent as compared to last week's 2.65 percent and 3.13 percent year-over-year. Falling mortgage rates were attributed to reduced consumer spending. Last week's economic news includes the NAHB Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI), with a reading of 42 for March. This is four points below investor expectations and…
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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – April 15, 2013

Mortgage rates saw little change last week amidst mixed economic news. Treasury auctions held on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday saw weak demand; this could have been caused by the FOMC minutes that were released on Wednesday. The minutes indicated that some FOMC members supported ending the current quantitative easing (QE) program within a few months. The Fed is currently purchasing $85 billion monthly in bonds and Mortgage Backed Securities. If the QE program is ended, demands for bonds and MBS will decline, which usually raises mortgage rates. Employment Numbers Show Promise For Housing Market Thursday's jobless claims offered some positive…
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