...[COLUMN_BREAK] Despite the increase, the average 30-year fixed rate mortgage has been below 4.00 percent for 15 consecutive weeks in ""Freddie Mac's study"":http://www.freddiemac.com/pmms/, helping to keep homebuyer affordability high. The...

Homebuyer affordability is at a record high, and a big driver of that underlying market denominator is the fact that mortgage interest rates continue to hover close to 60-year lows....

...could choke affordability with a spike in mortgage rates, ""Capital Economics"":http://www.capitaleconomics.com/ analysts said Tuesday. [IMAGE] _Source: Capital Economics_ Economists ""Paul Dales"":http://www.capitaleconomics.com/staff/global-economics/paul-dales.html and ""Paul Diggle"":http://www.capitaleconomics.com/staff/property-economics/paul-diggle.html wrote in a report that home...

All-time highs for housing affordability persisted this week as interest rates for fixed-rate mortgages hovered near their record-breaking lows, a sign that Europe continues to ward off investors. [IMAGE] Real...

...sales being processed."" The report said that still-anemic mortgage volume remains a problem even in an era of all-time highs for housing affordability, with tight underwriting, qualification standards, and credit...

...Affordability Index, showing that it moved from 179.1 February last year to 194.9 this year, not far from the level seen in January. [COLUMN_BREAK] February home prices averaged $136,700, according...

This week mortgage rates played by the same script seen for the last few months, furthering a season for all-time high affordability while fears for Europe drove investors across the...

...remarks, the central banker said that ""affordability has increased dramatically as a result of the decline in house prices and historically low interest rates on conventional mortgages"" but that ""many...

...5.4 percent of total housing inventory stayed off the market. Homeownership continues to decline despite all-time highs for affordability in the market. Mortgage rates consistently remain below 4 percent. Mortgage...

...second quarter next year. [COLUMN_BREAK] ""Housing affordability has improved dramatically because of declines in both prices and mortgage interest rates,"" David Stiff, chief economist with Fiserv, said in a statement....