Fixed Mortgage Rates Ease Going Into The Labor Day Weekend

News provided by

Freddie Mac

Aug 30, 2012, 10:00 ET

MCLEAN, Va., Aug. 30, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing fixed mortgage rates pulling back and following bond yields lower after gradually moving higher over the past month.

News Facts

  • 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 3.59 percent with an average 0.6 point for the week ending August 30, 2012, down from last week when it averaged 3.66 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.22 percent. 
  • 15-year FRM this week averaged 2.86 percent with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 2.89 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 3.39 percent. 
  • 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 2.78 percent this week with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 2.80 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 2.96 percent.
  • 1-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 2.63 percent this week with an average 0.4 point, down from last week when it averaged 2.66 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 2.89 percent.  

Average commitment rates should be reported along with average fees and points to reflect the total upfront cost of obtaining the mortgage. Visit the following links for Regional and National Mortgage Rate Details and Definitions. 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. 

  • "Treasury bond yields fell, allowing mortgage rates to follow, after the release of the July 31st and August 1st minutes of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy committee. Committee members agreed that economic activity had decelerated more in recent months than they had anticipated at their last meeting in June. Some members even saw room for additional stimulus fairly soon if needed.
  • "Nonetheless, the housing market continued to show improvement over the past few months. New home sales rose 3.6 percent in July matching May's pace as the strongest month since April 2010.  Similarly, pending existing home sales also rose in July to its highest rate since April 2010. And, the S&P/Case-Shiller® National Home Price Index rose 1.2 percent between the second quarter of 2011 and 2012, reflecting the first annual increase since the second quarter of 2010."

Get the latest information from Freddie Mac's Office of the Chief Economist on Twitter:@FreddieMac

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. www.FreddieMac.com.

SOURCE Freddie Mac