By Bankrate, Special for USDR
Mortgage rates fell for a second consecutive week, with the benchmark 30-year fixed mortgage rate retreating to 3.80 percent, according to Bankrate.com’s weekly national survey. The 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.25 discount and origination points.
To see mortgage rates in your area, go to http://www.bankrate.com/funnel/mortgages/.
The average 15-year fixed mortgage dropped to 3.04 percent while the larger jumbo 30-year fixed mortgage plummeted to a new record low of 3.92 percent. Adjustable rate mortgages also lower, with the 5-year ARM sinking to 3.14 percent and the 7-year ARM sliding to 3.31 percent.
Mortgage rates returned to the lowest point of 2015, a level seen three previous times from mid-January to early February. The catalyst was the Federal Reserve’s downgrading of economic and inflation expectations for this year, which pushed back the expected timing of an initial interest rate hike. Both bond yields and mortgage rates moved lower as expectations on the timing of interest rate hikes are tempered. Mortgage rates are closely related to yields on long-term government bonds.
One year ago, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 4.51 percent. At that time, a $200,000 loan would have carried a monthly payment of $1,014.56. With the average rate now at 3.80 percent, the monthly payment for the same size loan would be $931.91, a savings of $82 per month for anyone refinancing now.
SURVEY RESULTS
30-year fixed: 3.80% — down from 3.91% last week (avg. points: 0.25)
15-year fixed: 3.04% — down from 3.15% last week (avg. points: 0.19)
5/1 ARM: 3.14% — down from 3.20% last week (avg. points: 0.20)
Bankrate’s national weekly mortgage survey is conducted each Wednesday from data provided by the top 10 banks and thrifts in the top 10 markets.
For a full analysis of this week’s move in mortgage rates, go tohttp://www.bankrate.com/ mortgagerates.
The survey is complemented by Bankrate’s weekly Rate Trend Index, in which a panel of mortgage experts predicts which way the rates are headed over the next seven days. One thing is clear – the panelists don’t see mortgage rates rising in the next week. But the panelists are divided, with 55 percent expecting mortgage rates to remain more or less unchanged and 45 percent predicting further declines in the next seven days.
For the full mortgage Rate Trend Index, go to http://www.bankrate.com/news/rate-trends/mortgage.aspx.
About Bankrate, Inc. (NYSE: RATE)
Bankrate is a leading publisher, aggregator, and distributor of personal finance content on the Internet. Bankrate provides consumers with proprietary, fully researched, comprehensive, independent and objective personal finance editorial content across multiple vertical categories including mortgages, deposits, insurance, credit cards, and other categories, such as retirement, automobile loans, and taxes. The Bankrate network includes Bankrate.com, CreditCards.com, InsuranceQuotes.com and Caring.com, our flagship websites, and other owned and operated personal finance websites, including Interest.com, Bankaholic.com, Mortgage-calc.com, CreditCardGuide.com, CarInsuranceQuotes.com, Insweb.com, CreditCards.ca, and NetQuote.com. Bankrate aggregates rate information from over 4,800 institutions on more than 300 financial products. With coverage of over 600 local markets, Bankrate generates rate tables in all 50 U.S. states. Bankrate develops and provides web services to over 100 co-branded websites with online partners, including some of the most trusted and frequently visited personal finance sites on the Internet such as Yahoo!, AOL, CNBC, and Bloomberg. In addition, Bankrate licenses editorial content to over 500 newspapers on a daily basis including The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, and The Boston Globe.
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