30, 15-Year Mortgage Rates at 7-Month Low
Thursday, February 19, 2004
WASHINGTON — Rates on U.S. 30- and 15-year fixed-rate mortgages (search) slipped further in the week ended on Thursday, to the lowest levels in seven months, mortgage finance company Freddie Mac said.
It said 30-year mortgage rates edged down to 5.58 percent from 5.66 percent a week ago, the lowest it has been since the week of July 11, when they were at 5.52 percent.
Mortgage rates are approaching the 45-year lows of last summer, which spurred a record year for home sales.
"There continues to be no sign of inflation on the horizon and, as a matter of fact, core inflation is at a generational low," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist.
"This is good news for housing, as low mortgage rates make home ownership more available to a broader segment of society."
Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan's (search) congressional testimony last week on the economy helped ward off any fears about the Fed raising interest rates any time soon.
Fifteen-year mortgages fell slightly in the week, to an average of 4.87 percent from 4.96 percent, the lowest since July 11, when they averaged 4.85 percent. One-year adjustable rate mortgages stood at an average of 3.53 percent, compared with 3.57 percent last week.
A year ago, 30-year mortgages averaged 5.84 percent, 15-year mortgages 5.21 percent and the one-year ARM 3.81 percent.
Freddie Mac said lenders charged an average of 0.6 percent in fees and points on 30- and 15-year mortgages and the ARM, down from 0.7 percent a week ago.
Freddie Mac is a mortgage finance company chartered by Congress that buys mortgages from lenders and packages them into securities for investors or holds them in its own portfolio. |
