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Mortgage Rates Dip as Job Numbers, Spain Disappoint

Mortgage rates fell to lows not seen in a month on the heels of an underwhelming jobs report and concerns that Spain may follow Greece into default-scenario territory.

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Real estate Web site ""Zillow"":http://www.zillow.com/ found interest rates for the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage zigzagging across the country, just as it fell from 3.81 percent to 3.73 percent this week.

Rates for the 15-year loan hovered near 2.95 percent, while those for 5-year and 1-year adjustable-rate mortgages slumped to 2.56 percent.

""Spurred by an unimpressive U.S. jobs report and concerns about Spain's financial situation, mortgage rates fell to a four-week low after spiking early last week,"" ""Erin Lantz"":http://www.zillow.com/profile/Erin-Lantz/, director of Zillow Mortgage Marketplace, said in a statement.

She said that Zillow expects rates to ""remain fairly flat"" this next week, ""barring worsening news out of Europe or Federal Reserve commentary that contradicts the optimistic tone set by the release of the Fed's meeting minutes last week.""

The ""Labor Department"":http://www.dol.gov/ found Friday that the economy added only 120,000 jobs in March, falling below expectations and renewing concerns about the still-nascent recovery.

Conditions in Spain meanwhile continue to worsen as a new package of austerity policies failed to keep borrowing low, with ""_The Miami Herald_"":http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/04/10/2740771/worries-over-spain-grow-as-bond.html reporting that 10-year Spanish bonds ended on a high of 5.93 percent, a lift from 5.74 percent at Easter time.

About Author: Ryan Schuette

Ryan Schuette is a journalist, cartoonist, and social entrepreneur with several years of experience in real-estate news, international reporting, and business management. He currently lives in the Washington, D.C., area, where he freelances for DS News and MReport.
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