Mortgage rates have moderated after turning in a significant drop last week, according to the Primary Mortgage Market Survey from Freddie Mac.
“The response to the recent decline in mortgage rates is already being felt in the housing market,” said Sam Khater, chief economist for Freddie Mac. After declining for six consecutive months, existing home sales finally rose in October and November and are essentially at the same level as during the summer months. This modest rebound in sales indicates that homebuyers are very sensitive to mortgage rate changes and given the further drop in rates we’ve seen this month, we expect to see a modest rebound in home sales as well.”
Mortgage rates for the week in brief:
- 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.62 percent with an average 0.4 point for the week ending December 20, 2018, down from last week when it averaged 4.63 percent. A year-ago at this time, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.94 percent.
- 15-year fixed-rate mortgage this week averaged 4.07 percent with an average 0.4 point, unchanged from last week. A year-ago at this time, the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.38 percent.
- 5-year Treasury-indexed adjustable rate mortgage averaged 3.98 percent with an average 0.3 point, down from last week when it averaged 4.04 percent. A year-ago at this time, the 5-year adjustable-rate mortgage averaged 3.39 percent.
