NEW YORK, NY - Mortgage rates increased this week, with the benchmark 30-year fixed mortgage rate rising to 4.44 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.33 discount and origination points.
The average 15-year fixed mortgage climbed to 3.47 percent, while the larger jumbo 30-year fixed mortgage rate is now 4.45 percent. The spread between the benchmark 30-year fixed rate and the larger jumbo 30-year fixed rate is the narrowest ever recorded in Bankrate.com's survey. Adjustable rate mortgages bounced back also, with the 7-year adjustable moving up to 3.62 percent and the 10-year adjustable rate stepping over the 4 percent mark to 4.03 percent.
Mortgage rates moved higher, unwinding much of last week's decline, following the release of the Federal Reserve's meeting minutes which raised worries about an earlier tapering of bond purchases. Concerns that the Fed may start dialing back the stimulus sooner than expected pushed bond yields and mortgage rates higher. Mortgage rates are closely related to yields on long-term government bonds.
As recently as May 1st, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 3.52 percent. At that time, a $200,000 loan would have carried a monthly payment of $900.32. With the average rate currently at 4.44 percent, the monthly payment for the same size loan would be $1,006.25, a difference of approximately $106 per month for anyone that waited too long.
SURVEY RESULTS
30-year fixed: 4.44% -- up from 4.39% last week (avg. points: 0.33)
15-year fixed: 3.47% -- up from 3.42% last week (avg. points: 0.27)
5/1 ARM: 3.29% -- up from 3.28% last week (avg. points: 0.26)
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 majority of this week's respondents, 63 percent, expect mortgage rates to remain more or less unchanged over the coming week, while 25 percent predict mortgage rates will fall. Just 12 percent forecast an increase in mortgage rates in the next week.