After rising for three consecutive weeks, mortgage rates reversed course during the week ended May 2, with the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage falling to 4.14%, down from 4.20% the previous week, according to Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey.
A year ago at this time, the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 4.55%.
The average rate for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage was 3.60%, down from 3.64%.
A year ago at this time, the average rate for a 15-year was 4.03%.
The average rate for a five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) was 3.68%, down from 3.77%.
A year ago at this time, the average rate for a 5-year ARM was 3.69%.
“Slightly weaker inflation and labor economic data caused mortgage rates to dip this week,” says Sam Khater, chief economist for Freddie Mac, in a statement. “Moving into summer, we expect rates to be about a quarter to half a percentage point lower than where they were last year, which is good news for the housing market.
“These lower rates combined with solid economic growth, low inflation and rebounding consumer confidence should provide a solid foundation for home sales to continue to improve over the next couple of months,” Khater adds.