Mortgage rates remained basically flat this week, as the average rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage stood at 2.87%, down slightly from 2.88% last week, according to Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey.
“The year-long slide in mortgage rates seems to be ending as rates have flattened over the last month and the economic rebound has slowed,” says Sam Khater, chief economist for Freddie Mac, in a statement. “But with near record low rates, buyer demand remains robust with strong first-time buyers coming into the market. The demand is particularly strong in more affordable regions of the country such as the Midwest, where home prices are accelerating at the highest rates over the last two decades.”
A year ago at this time, the average rate for a 30-year was 3.57%.
The average rate for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage was 2.37%, up slightly from 2.36% the previous week but down from 3.05% a year ago.
The average rate for a five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) was 2.89%, down slightly from 2.90% the previous week and down from 3.35% a year ago.
Last week’s decrease in mortgage rates resulted in an increase in applications for refinances.