MORTGAGE RATES DOWN: FOR THIRD CONSECUTIVE WEEK

30-year fixed-rate mortgage: Averaged 5.14 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending July 16, 2009, down from last week when it averaged 5.20 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.26 percent.

15-year fixed-rate mortgage: Averaged 4.63 percent with an average 0.7 point, down from last week when it averaged 4.69 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 5.78 percent.

Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid ARMs: Averaged 4.83 percent this week, with an average 0.7 point, up slightly from last week when it averaged 4.82 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 5.80 percent.

One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs: Averaged 4.76 percent this week with an average 0.5 point, down from last week when it averaged 4.82 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 5.10 percent.

Freddie Sayz

Average fixed-rate mortgage rates were lower than last week and were down 0.4 percent to 0.5 percent from the levels of early June.,said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. For a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, the rate reduction over the past five weeks translates into a monthly payment saving of $56 on a $200,000 loan.

The latest economic reports were influenced by recent energy-cost movements. Although higher gasoline prices fueled a 0.7 percent monthly jump in the consumer price index for June, the index was down 1.4 percent from June 2008 and represented the largest 12-month drop since January 1950. In addition, retail sales rose 0.6 percent in June bolstered by automobile sale incentives and higher gasoline prices; the average price for regular gasoline has since fallen 6.1 percent from its recent high set over the week ending June 22, according to the Energy Information Administration. And finally, industrial production fell only 0.4 percent in June, the slowest decline in eight months.


Thanks for Reading
Howard Bell
yourpropertypath.com
A web site of over 450 articles related to real estate focused primarily on property management.