NEW YORK, NY - Mortgage rates increased for a fourth consecutive week, with the benchmark 30-year fixed mortgage rate rising to 3.99 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.36 discount and origination points.
The average 15-year fixed mortgage climbed to 3.21 percent, and the same was true for the larger jumbo 30-year fixed mortgage rate which jumped to 4.20 percent. Adjustable rate mortgages were also higher, with the popular 5-year ARM notching higher to 2.81 percent and the 1-year ARM leaping to 3.04 percent, respectively.
Mortgage rates jumped for a fourth consecutive week, rising to the highest point in the last twelve months. The prospect of the Federal Reserve beginning to taper the pace of bond purchases, coupled with continued positive economic news, pushed bond yields and mortgage rates higher. Mortgage rates are closely related to yields on long-term bonds.
The last time mortgage rates were above 5 percent was Apr. 2011. At the time, the average 30-year fixed rate was 5.07 percent, meaning a $200,000 loan would have carried a monthly payment of $1,082.22. With the average rate currently at 3.99 percent, the monthly payment for the same size loan would be $953.68, a difference of $129 per month for anyone refinancing now.
SURVEY RESULTS
30-year fixed: 3.99% -- up from 3.74% last week (avg. points: 0.36)
15-year fixed: 3.21% -- up from 2.97% last week (avg. points: 0.27)
5/1 ARM: 2.81% -- up from 2.70% last week (avg. points: 0.25)
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. The panelists were split this week, with 40 percent forecasting that mortgage rates will increase in the coming week and 40 percent predicting that rates will decline. The remaining 20% expect rates to remain more or less unchanged.