Mortgage rates fell for the ninth time in 10 weeks as inflation anxiety calms down, according to Freddie Mac's weekly report.
For the week ending September 28, 2006, the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was down to 6.31% from 6.40% the week prior. One year ago, the 30-year fixed averaged 5.91%.
The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage was also down. It stood at 5.98% for the week, down from 6.06% the week prior. One year ago, the 15-year averaged 5.48%.
The five-year hybrid ARM fell to 6.00% from 6.08%. One year ago, the 5-year hybrid averaged 5.44%.
The average one-year ARM was also down this week to 5.47% from 5.54% the week prior. One year ago, the one-year stood at 4.68%.
The week's economic data played a role in the decrease of mortgage rates, according to Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist.
"This week's economic releases, which showed a slight one-year decline in both new and existing house prices in August, fell short of market expectations and prompted market analysts to reassess how much the housing sector will contribute to economic growth in the coming year," he explained.
"As a result, mortgage rates declined even further this week to match those set six months ago," Nothaft continued. "One bright note in the releases was that the average time new homes stood for sale narrowed from 6.6 months to 6.3 months in August, which should mitigate some of the softening of new home prices over the next few months. In addition, both lower mortgage rates and a moderation in house price growth should lead to increased housing affordability -- especially as family incomes are forecasted to continue rising."
Martin Lukac represents http://www.RateEmpire.com and http://www.1AmericanFinancial.com, a finance web-company specializing in real estate and mortgage rates. We specialize in daily updates, mortgage news, rate predictions, mortgage rates and more. Find low home loan mortgage interest rates from hundreds of mortgage companies!