Mortgage Rates Hover as Uncertainty Reigns

Fixed mortgage rates fell back slightly to start November as investors anxiously wait for signs of which direction the economy is headed.

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According to Freddie Mac's ""Primary Mortgage Market Survey"":http://www.freddiemac.com/news/finance/index.html, the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 3.39 percent (0.7 point) for the week ending November 1, down from 3.41 percent in the previous week.

The 15-year fixed average for the week was 2.70 percent (0.7 point), a slip from 2.72 percent in the last survey.

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Adjustable rates also fell: The 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 2.74 percent (0.6 point), down from the previous week's average of 2.75 percent. Meanwhile, the 1-year ARM averaged 2.58 percent (0.4 point), dropping one basis point from 2.59 percent before.

""Bankrate.com's"":http://www.bankrate.com/ weekly survey also demonstrated decreases all around. The 30-year fixed average fell to 3.57 percent from 3.61 percent in the last survey, while the 15-year fixed average declined to 2.89 percent from 2.90 percent. Adjustable rates inched down as well, falling to 2.72 percent from 2.73 percent a week before.

A combined 78 percent of experts and analysts ""surveyed by Bankrate"":http://www.bankrate.com/news/rate-trends/mortgage.aspx expect rates will either continue to drop or remain unchanged in the near future. Many voiced uncertainty, however, as the market remains caught between Hurricane Sandy and the presidential election.

""In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, with both the monthly jobs report and the presidential election looming, and the fiscal cliff unresolved, investors are understandably nervous. Such nervousness and uncertainty fuels demand for the safety and security of government securities,"" Bankrate said in a release. ""Just some of this--but not all--will be resolved in the coming week, so expect mortgage rates to be in flux for some time.""