Home Building Articles

Freddie Mac: Mortgage Rates Fall Again

June 23, 2009

The national average interest rate on the benchmark 30-year, fixed-rate loan averaged 5.69% in the week ending Thursday, down from 5.87% a week ago and 6.23% a year ago.  The 15-year fixed-rate loan averaged 5.21% down from 5.43% a week ago and 5.98% a year ago.  Both the 30-and 15-year fixed-rate mortgages are at their lowest levels since July 2005, according to Freddie Mac.  The five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage averaged 5.40% compared with 5.63% a week ago and 6.04% a year ago.  "The latest retail sales report indicated that shoppers scaled back spending in December, as retail sales declined by 0.4% from November's level," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist.  "Particularly weak were sales of building materials, garden equipment and supply stores, which fell by 2.9% from the previous month.  The declines aggravated concerns about the well-being of the economy and exerted downward pressure on the mortgage rates."

*Source: Michelle Donley, MarketWatch Pulse 2008.