Saturday, May 18, 2013
Mortgage rate drops below 3.5 percent for first time
POSTED: 05:29 a.m. HST, Jul 26, 2012
WASHINGTON >> The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage fell again, this time dropping below 3.50 percent for the first time on records dating back 60 years.
Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the rate on the 30-year loan declined to 3.49 percent. That's down from 3.53 percent last week and the lowest since long-term mortgages began in the 1950s.
The average rate on the 15-year fixed mortgage, a popular refinancing option, dipped to 2.80 percent. That's below last week's previous record of 2.83 percent.
The rate on the 30-year loan has fallen to or matched record-low levels in 13 of the past 14 weeks.
Cheaper mortgages have helped drive a modest but uneven housing recovery this year.
Sales of new and previously occupied homes fell in June but were higher than the same month last year. Home prices have started to stabilize in many large markets. And builders are more confident and are putting up more houses than they have in nearly four years.
30-year mortgage rate falls to record low
Mortgage rates keep falling to record low levels
Rate on 30-year mortgage hits record low
U.S. 30-year mortgage rate slips to record low
Rate on 30-year mortgage falls to record low
30-year mortgage rates fall to another record low
U.S. fixed mortgage rates fall to new record lows
Mortgage rates fall to lowest level in six decades
30-year mortgage rates fall to lowest point since 1971
Rate on 30-year mortgage holds steady
