Mortgage rates eased for a second straight week to start October as the latest housing and economic news came up mixed.
In its Primary Mortgage Market Survey [1] for the week ending October 2, Freddie Mac [2] reported a minor pullback in the 30-year fixed interest rate to an average 4.19 percent (0.4 point) from last week's 4.20 percent. The average 30-year fixed was also little changed from last year's average rate of 4.22 percent.
The 15-year fixed average rate was unchanged at 3.36 percent (0.5 point).
Hybrid adjustable rates came down this week. According to Freddie Mac, the 5-year adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged an interest rate of 3.06 percent (0.5 point) in the latest survey, while the 1-year ARM averaged 2.42 percent (0.4 point).
"Mortgage rates were flat to slightly down across the board as GDP [3] was revised up from 4.2 percent to 4.6 percent for the second quarter and the S&P/Case-Shiller National Price Index [4] was up a seasonally adjusted 0.2 percent for July and up 5.6 percent from the prior July," said Frank Nothaft, VP and chief economist at Freddie Mac. "Pending home sales [5] data were less optimistic, though, down 1 percent in August."
Those weren't the only factors tugging on mortgage rates this week, however. In an analysis, Bankrate.com [6] pointed to mounting worries about global economic growth driving investors to the relative safety of Treasury bonds.
"Adding further uncertainty to financial markets were the pro-Democracy protests in Hong Kong. The nervousness of investors—regardless of the cause—helped bring bond yields and mortgage rates lower," the site said.
For its own survey [7], Bankrate recorded the 30-year fixed average at 4.27 percent, down from 4.30 percent, with the 15-year fixed rate down to 3.44 percent from 3.46 percent. The 5/1 ARM also fell, decreasing to an average 3.29 percent.