NEW YORK, NY - The 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to a new record low of 4.19 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.32 discount and origination points. The average 15-year fixed mortgage tied a record low at 3.42 percent, while the jumbo 30-year fixed mortgage nosed up to 4.69 percent. Adjustable rate mortgages were mixed, with the average 3-year ARM holding at 3.49 percent and the 5-year ARM rising to 3.21 percent.
Mortgage rates haven't moved much since the beginning of November, but this week's move was enough to push fixed mortgage rates back into record-low territory. Continued uneasiness about the European debt crisis, ongoing political wrangling about the payroll tax cut extension, and no indication of forthcoming stimulus from the Federal Open Market Committee collectively brought mortgage rates lower. Mortgage rates are at record low levels despite notably improved economic data in recent months. But with Europe's crisis still holding sway, the better economic picture has gone largely unnoticed in financial markets.
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 4.19 percent, the monthly payment for the same size loan would be $976.87, a difference of $265 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 respondents, 56 percent, don't think mortgage rates will go much of anywhere in the next week, predicting they'll be unchanged. One-in-four forecasts a decline while just 19 percent expect mortgage rates to rise in the coming week.
For the full mortgage Rate Trend Index, go to www.bankrate.com
Bankrate is a leading publisher, aggregator and distributor of personal finance content on the Internet. Bankrate provides consumers with proprietary, fully researched, comprehensive, independent and objective personal finance editorial content across multiple vertical categories including mortgages, deposits, insurance, credit cards, and other categories, such as retirement, automobile loans, and taxes. The Bankrate network includes Bankrate.com, our flagship website, and other owned and operated personal finance websites, including CreditCards.com, Interest.com, Bankaholic.com, Mortgage-calc.com, CreditCardGuide.com, Nationwide Card Services, InsuranceQuotes.com, CarInsuranceQuotes.com, InsureMe, Bankrate.com.cn, CreditCards.ca, NetQuote.com, and CD.com. Bankrate aggregates rate information from over 4,800 institutions on more than 300 financial products. With coverage of nearly 600 local markets in all 50 U.S. states, Bankrate generates over 172,000 distinct rate tables capturing on average over three million pieces of information daily. Bankrate develops and provides web services to over 75 co-branded websites with online partners, including some of the most trusted and frequently visited personal finance sites on the Internet such as Yahoo!, AOL, CNBC and Bloomberg. In addition, Bankrate licenses editorial content to over 100 newspapers on a daily basis including The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times and The Boston Globe.