Mortgage Rate Trends for May 11-18, 2010

While national mortgage rates are generally falling, we are seeing a trend of mortgage rates remaining above 5 percent. According to Freddie Mac, the national average for a 30-year fixed mortgage stayed above 5 percent for the fifth straight week.

Rates for May 2-9th and This Week
While last week’s rate was noted at 5.07 percent, this week’s rate fell to 5.06 percent. Compare this to 2009, when the national average for fixed rate mortgages was about 4.8 percent.

In December, when the Federal Reserve and the government released new FHA guidelines and federal loans, rates tumbled down to 4.71 percent. Consumers were then able to borrow more without worrying about a high, spiked interest rate. Since the program ended in March, rates have steadily crept above 5 percent.

Protecting Against Home Price Decline
Generally, these home mortgage rates are still considered low rates, as they protect the real estate market from suffering large declines in home prices. Most of the time, Freddie Mac will survey private and semi-private lenders across the country to calculate national averages.

They’ll do this research on Monday through Wednesday so they can release the results on Thursday.
The rate on 15-year fixed rate mortgages remained the same as last week, at 4.39 percent. Five-year adjustable rate mortgages fell somewhat significantly, from 4.03 percent to 4 percent.

Including Fee Assessments and Points
None of Freddie Mac’s above calculations include fee assessments for loan points. Generally, points are considered to be equivalent to 1 percent of the amount of the loan.

These points are calculated separately. As you can see, rates are generally hovering between 4.7 and 5 percent nowadays.

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