Contract mortgage interest rates decreased 0.1% from October to November, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency's (FHFA) index of new mortgage contracts.
According the FHFA, the National Average Contract Mortgage Rate for the Purchase of Previously Occupied Homes by Combined Lenders index was 4.21% for loans closed in late November. The index is calculated using the FHFA's Monthly Interest Rate Survey. The contract rate on the composite of all mortgage loans was 4.22% – down 10 basis points from 4.32 in October.
The FHFA says interest rates are typically locked in 30-45 days before a loan is closed; consequently, November data reflects market rates from mid to late October.
The effective interest rate was 4.38%, down 11 basis points from 4.49 percent in October. The effective interest rate accounts for the addition of initial fees and charges over the life of the mortgage, says the FHFA.
The interest rate survey shows that the average interest rate on conventional, 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages of $417,000 or less was 4.48 in November – a decrease of 10 basis points.
The average loan amount for all loans was $264,900 in November -down $4,100 from $269,000 in October, according to the data.