Fixed Mortgage Rates Hit Record Lows Again
Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing average fixed mortgage rates again hitting new record lows. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage at 3.79 percent continues to remain well below 4 percent and 15-year fixed-rate mortgages are also slightly down at 3.04 percent.
News Facts
- 30 year fixed mortgages (FRM) averaged 3.79 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending May 17, 2012, down from last week when it averaged 3.83 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.61 percent.
- 15 year fixed mortgages this week averaged 3.04 percent with an average 0.7 point, down from last week when it averaged 3.05 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 3.80 percent.
- 5 year ARMs averaged 2.83 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point, up from last week when it averaged 2.81 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 3.48 percent.
- 1 year ARMs averaged 2.78 percent this week with an average 0.5 point, up from last week when it averaged 2.73 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 3.15 percent.
Average commitment rates should be reported along with average fees and points to reflect the total upfront cost of obtaining the mortgage. Borrowers may still pay closing costs which are not included in the survey.
Quotes
Attributed to Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist, Freddie Mac.
- “The European debt crisis overshadowed improving economic indicators for the U.S. and allowed Treasury bond yields and fixed mortgage rates to ease for another week. For instance, industrial production rose 1.1 percent in April — the largest gain since December 2010 — and consumer sentiment in May rose to its highest reading since January 2008, according to the University of Michigan.
- There was also good news in the home construction industry. Housing starts rose to an annualized rate of 717,000 homes in April, well above the market consensus forecast, and construction on one-family homes increased to its strongest pace in three months. Moreover, homebuilder confidence in May reached its highest reading since January 2008 according to the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index
Freddie Mac was established by Congress in 1970 to provide liquidity, stability and affordability to the nation’s residential mortgage markets. Freddie Mac supports communities across the nation by providing mortgage capital to lenders. Today Freddie Mac is making home possible for one in four homebuyers and is one of the largest sources of financing for multifamily housing.
SOURCE: Freddie Mac
About Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey
Beginning in April 1971, Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®) has contacted lenders each week asking the rates and points for their most popular mortgage products which now include the 30 year fixed mortgage, 15 year fixed mortgage, 5 Year ARM and 1 year ARM. The survey is based on first-lien prime conventional conforming mortgages with a loan-to-value of 80 percent.
Currently, Freddie Mac surveys about 125 lenders each week consisting of thrifts, credit unions, commercial banks and mortgage lending companies in roughly the same proportion each type of lender commands in business in the mortgage marketplace.
The survey is conducted Monday – Wednesday with the results posted on Thursdays. Average rates and points (and margin for ARMs) for each product are reported for the nation and the five Freddie Mac regions.
PMMS results have evolved into the foremost representative source of regional and national mortgage rate trends and are relied upon by the mortgage industry and the public in gauging market conditions and evaluating mortgage loan options.
Comments Off
Massachusetts Mortgage Rate Trends