Fri, Dec 27, 2013, 11:13AM EST
Average US 30-year mortgage rises to 4.48 pct.
By The Associated Press December 26,
2013 10:50 AM
WASHINGTON (AP) — Average U.S. rates
for fixed mortgages crept higher this week but remained low by historical
standards.
Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said
Thursday that the rate on the 30-year loan increased to 4.48 percent from 4.47
percent last week. The average on the 15-year fixed loan rose to 3.52 percent
from 3.51 percent.
Mortgage rates peaked at 4.6 percent
in August on expectations that the Federal Reserve would reduce its $85
billion-a-month in bond purchases. Those purchases push mortgage and other
long-term rates lower and encourage borrowing and spending. On Dec. 18, the Fed
finally decided the economy was strong enough to allow it to reduce the monthly
purchases by $10 billion.
Mortgage rates are sharply higher
than they were a year ago when the 30-year fixed rate was 3.35 percent and the
15-year was 2.65 percent.
The Commerce Department reported
Tuesday that new-home sales dipped 2.1 percent in November to a seasonally
adjusted 464,000. But stronger figures for the previous three months suggested
that housing may be regaining strength after a summer lull.
The National Association of Realtors
said last week that the number of people who bought existing homes in November
fell for a third straight month. Higher rates and the lingering effects of the
partial government shutdown in October may have deterred some sales.
Still, the government said builders
broke ground on homes at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.09 million
homes and apartments in November. That was the fastest pace since February 2008
and was 23 percent higher than in October.
To calculate average mortgage rates,
Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country between Monday and Wednesday
each week. The average doesn't include extra fees, known as points, which most
borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the
loan amount.
The average fee for a 30-year
mortgage was 0.7 point. The fee for a 15-year loan was 0.7 point.
The average rate on a one-year
adjustable-rate mortgage slipped to 2.56 percent from 2.57 percent last week.
The fee was 0.5 point.
The average rate on a five-year
adjustable mortgage rose to 3 percent from 2.96 percent. The fee was 0.4 point.