Fixed mortgage rates inched up slightly during the week ended Dec. 24, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.
The average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) was 3.83%, up from 3.80% the previous week. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.48%.
The average rate for a 15-year FRM this week was 3.10%, up from 3.09% the week prior. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 3.52%.
The average rate for a five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) was 3.01%, up from 2.95% the previous week. A year ago, the five-year ARM averaged 3.00%.
The average rate for a one-year Treasury-indexed ARM was 2.39%, up from 2.38% the week prior. At this time last year, the one-year ARM averaged 2.56%.
‘Mortgage rates were up slightly, following a week of mixed economic releases,’ reports Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist for Freddie Mac, in a release. ‘Existing home sales were down 6.1 percent in November to annual rate of 4.93 million units, below economists' expectations. New home sales fell 1.6 percent last month to an annual rate of 438,000, also below expectations. Meanwhile, the third quarter real GDP was revised sharply higher to 5.0 percent according to the final estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis.’