Treasure Valley Properties

Blogs

Mortgage Rates For Week Ending December 6, 2007

McLean, VA – Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®) in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 5.96 percent with an average 0.4 point for the week ending December 6, 2007, down from last week when it averaged 6.10 percent as well. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.11 percent. The 30-year FRM has not been lower since the week ending September 29, 2005, when it averaged 5.91 percent.

The 15-year FRM this week averaged 5.65 percent with an average 0.5 point, down from last week when it averaged 5.73 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 5.84 percent. The 15-year FRM has not been lower since the week ending October 13, 2005, when it averaged 5.62 percent.

Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) averaged 5.75 percent this week, with an average 0.5 point, down from last week when it averaged 5.86 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 5.92 percent. The 5-year ARM has not been lower since the week ending October 27, 2005 when it averaged 5.63 percent.

One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs averaged 5.46 percent this week with an average 0.6 point, up from last week when it was 5.43 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 5.43 percent.

(Average commitment rates should be reported along with average fees and points to reflect the total cost of obtaining the mortgage.)

“House prices rose only 1.8 percent over the 12-months ending September 30th, the slowest rate of growth since the 12-month period ending March 31, 1995, according to the Federal Housing Finance Board’s national house-price index,” said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. “With lower consumer spending and personal income gains in October, interest rates on U.S. Treasury securities fell lower this week and mortgage rates followed.

“In addition, U.S. nonfarm productivity jumped by an annual rate of 6.3 percent in the third quarter, the most since 2003, while labor costs fell 2.0 percent. Greater efficiencies and lower costs ease pressures for companies to raise prices and offer the Federal Reserve (Fed) more leeway to reduce short-term rates. Currently, the federal funds futures market has almost a 100 percent probability that the Fed will lower rates in its December 11th policy committee meeting. These combined factors will likely diminish upward pressures on mortgage rates over the next few months.”

Freddie Mac is a stockholder-owned corporation established by Congress in 1970 to support homeownership and rental housing. Freddie Mac purchases single-family and multifamily residential mortgages and mortgage-related securities, which it finances primarily by issuing mortgage-related securities and debt instruments in the capital markets. Over the years, Freddie Mac has made home possible more than 50 million times, ensuring financing for one in six homebuyers and more than four million renters.