After increasing slightly the previous week, mortgage rates were basically flat during the week ended July 19, with the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) at 4.52%, down slightly from 4.53%, according to Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey.
A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 3.96%.
Sam Khater, chief economist for Freddie Mac, says mortgage rates moved sideways, primarily because of the mixed bag of economic data released this week.
“Manufacturing output and consumer spending showed improvements, but construction activity was a disappointment,” Khater says in a statement. “This meant there was no driving force to move mortgage rates in any meaningful way, which has been the theme in the last two months. That’s good news for price sensitive home shoppers, given that this stability in borrowing costs allows them a little extra time to find the right home.
“Unfortunately, don’t expect much relief from the tight inventory conditions plaguing many markets” Khater adds. “As seen again last month, new home construction is not picking up to meet demand, and as a result, home prices are still rising at double the pace of income growth.”
The average rate for a 15-year FRM this week was 4.00%, down slightly from 4.02%. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 3.23%.
The average rate for a five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) was 3.87%, up slightly from 3.86%. A year ago at this time, the five-year ARM averaged 3.21%.