NEW YORK, NY - Mortgage rates pulled back for a second consecutive week, with the benchmark 30-year fixed mortgage rate retreating to 4.57 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 fell to 3.62 percent, and the larger jumbo 30-year fixed mortgage slid to 4.65 percent. Adjustable rate mortgages were broadly lower, with the average 5-year ARM dropping to 3.40 percent and the 7-year ARM slumping to 3.75 percent.
The disappointing December jobs report brought yields on 10-year Treasury notes down from the 3 percent threshold where they started the year. As a result, mortgage rates fell to the lowest levels since mid-December. Mortgage rates are closely related to yields on long-term government bonds. Whether there is more economic weakness and declining mortgage rates to come, or the jobs report was an anomaly, the recent pullback in mortgage rates represents an opportunity for borrowers to lock in at attractive levels amid what is expected to be an environment of steadily rising mortgage rates.
On May 1, 2013, 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 4.57 percent, the monthly payment for the same size loan would be $1,021.71, a difference of $121 per month for anyone that waited too long.
SURVEY RESULTS
30-year fixed: 4.57% -- down from 4.64% last week (avg. points: 0.36)
15-year fixed: 3.62% -- down from 3.69% last week (avg. points: 0.23)
5/1 ARM: 3.40% -- down from 3.46% 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 are split this week, with 38 percent expecting mortgage rates to rise, and an equal 38 percent predicting that rates will remain more or less unchanged. Just 24 percent of the respondents forecast a decline in mortgage rates in the next week.