NEW YORK, NY - Mortgage rates moved higher for a second consecutive week, with the benchmark 30-year fixed mortgage rate rising to 4.10 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.23 discount and origination points.
The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate increased to 3.27 percent, while the larger jumbo 30-year fixed mortgage rate inched higher to 4.11 percent. Adjustable rate mortgages were mostly higher, with the 5-year ARM climbing to 3.17 percent and the 7-year ARM bouncing upward to 3.80 percent.
Mortgage rates continued their slow rebound from the 17-month lows established two weeks ago, rising for a second consecutive week as economic and financial market tensions eased. With the Federal Reserve ending its bond purchase program and noting the "substantial" improvement in the job market, the bias may be to the upside for both bond yields and mortgage rates in the coming months. Mortgage rates are closely related to yields on long-term government bonds.
As 2013 came to a close, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 4.69 percent. At that time, a $200,000 loan would have carried a monthly payment of $1,036.07. Mortgage rates have moved lower thus far in 2014, and with the average rate now 4.10 percent, the monthly payment for the same size loan would be $966.40, a savings of almost $70 per month for anyone that waited.
SURVEY RESULTS
30-year fixed: 4.10% -- up from 4.05% last week (avg. points: 0.23)
15-year fixed: 3.27% -- up from 3.21% last week (avg. points: 0.12)
5/1 ARM: 3.17% -- up from 3.14% last week (avg. points: 0.13)
Bankrate's national weekly mortgage survey is conducted each Wednesday from data provided by the top 10 banks and thrifts in the top 10 markets.
For a full analysis of this week's move in mortgage rates, go to www.bankrate.com
The survey is complemented by Bankrate's weekly Rate Trend Index, in which a panel of mortgage experts predicts which way the rates are headed over the next seven days. A bit more than half of the panelists – 55 percent - expect mortgage rates to remain more or less unchanged over the coming week. Thirty-six percent forecast a continued rebound in rates, while just 9 percent predict a pullback in mortgage rates over the coming week.