NEW YORK, NY - Mortgage rates were on the rise, with the benchmark 30-year fixed mortgage rate returning to the 2015 peak of 4.03 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.26 discount and origination points.
The average 15-year fixed mortgage set a new 2015 high water mark of 3.26 percent, while the larger jumbo 30-year fixed mortgage inched lower to 4.06 percent. Adjustable rate mortgages were a mixed bag, with the 3-year ARM down to 3.17 percent, the 5-year ARM nosing higher to 3.18 percent, and the 10-year ARM unchanged at 3.70 percent.
Mortgage rates reversed course, moving higher as bond market volatility returned. Mortgage rates are closely related to yields on long-term government bonds, which fluctuate based on the outlook for the economy, interest rates, and inflation. Mortgage rates are now nearly one-quarter percentage point higher than they were just six weeks ago, when mortgage rates were at the lowest level in nearly two years. The monthly employment report is looming, and could prove to be the next catalyst for movement in mortgage rates.
Six weeks ago mortgage rates were at the lowest point in nearly two years when the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 3.79 percent. At that time, a $200,000 loan would have carried a monthly payment of $930.78. With the average rate now at 4.03 percent, the monthly payment for the same size loan would be $958.29, a difference of $27 per month for anyone that waited just a bit too long.
SURVEY RESULTS
30-year fixed: 4.03% -- up from 4.00% last week (avg. points: 0.26)
15-year fixed: 3.26% -- up from 3.22% last week (avg. points: 0.17)
5/1 ARM: 3.18% -- up from 3.17% last week (avg. points: 0.19)
Bankrate's national weekly mortgage survey is conducted each Wednesday from data provided by the top 10 banks and thrifts in 10 top 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. There is no clear consensus this week, with 46 percent of the panelists forecasting that mortgage rates will rise further, and 36 percent predicting a pullback. Just 18 percent expect mortgage rates to remain more or less unchanged over the coming week.