Tag Archives: Adjustable-Rate Mortgage

Mortgage applications increased 11.7 percent for the week ending January 4, with refinances rising 12 percent and purchase applications up 10 percent.

A new study from Fannie Mae suggests that many Americans fail to do their homework when considering mortgage options.

Amid increases in new construction, homebuilder confidence, and existing home sales, Freddie Mac reported fixed mortgage rates reaching new record lows for the second week in a row. The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rate fell to 3.31 percent (0.7 point) over the week ending November 21. The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage also experienced a decline this week, falling from 2.65 percent to 2.63 percent (0.7 point), according to Freddie Mac's data.

More than 95 percent of borrowers who refinanced in this year's third quarter selected a fixed-rate loan, according to data from Freddie Mac.

Mortgage activity was down last week, dropping 11 percent from the previous week and by almost one-third from the same week last year.

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

Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) showed surprisingly little life this week following the better-than-expected jobs report for September. While rates did rise for the week ending October 11, most increases were mild. The 30-year fixed average posted the largest growth, rising to 3.39 percent (0.7 point) from 3.36 percent├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔé¼┬Øa record low├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔé¼┬Øthe week before. Bankrate's survey saw more dramatic increases, with the 30-year fixed hiking up seven basis points to 3.59 percent.

Homeowners and potential first-time buyers couldn't be tempted by record-low mortgage rates last week, according to the Mortech Inc. and Mortgage Daily's U.S. Mortgage Market Index.

For the second week in a row, mortgage rates hit new record lows, and for the first time since mid-October 2009, the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage rate is lower than the 5-year adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) rate. Frank Nothaft, VP and chief economist at Freddie Mac, attributes the falling rates to "mortgage securities purchases by the Federal Reserve and indicators of a weakening economy," such as slow personal income growth in August and last quarter's downwardly revised Gross Domestic Product.

Mortgage applications saw increased activity in the last week of September, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported.