NEW YORK, NY - The benchmark conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rate jumped from 4.21 percent to 4.37 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.4 discount and origination points. The average 15-year fixed mortgage ratcheted higher to 3.59 percent while the larger jumbo 30-year fixed rate climbed to 4.9 percent. Adjustable rate mortgages were higher also, with the average 5-year ARM rising to 3.26 percent and the 10-year ARM soaring to 3.89 percent.
After hitting record lows in six of the past seven weeks, mortgage rates jumped sharply this week. But this brings us back to where we were in late August, which was also a record low at the time. This week's increase was spurred by better than expected job growth and optimism that Europe has a handle on their debt issues, which pushed government bond yields and mortgage rates higher. This optimism could prove temporary. All it takes is a hiccup in Europe or disappointing earnings or economic news on this side of the Atlantic, and mortgage rates will head right back down.
The last time mortgage rates were above 6 percent was Nov. 2008. At the time, the average 30-year fixed rate was 6.33 percent, meaning a $200,000 loan would have carried a monthly payment of $1,241.86. With the average rate now 4.37 percent, the monthly payment for the same size loan would be $997.98, a difference of $244 per month for anyone refinancing now.
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.
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. More than half of the panelists, 55 percent, predict mortgage rates will decline over the next week. A little more than one-in-four, 27 percent, forecast continued increases and just 18 percent say mortgage rates will be more or less unchanged over the upcoming week.
For the full mortgage Rate Trend Index, go to: www.bankrate.com
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