The Wall Street Journal-20080125-Fixed Rates Fall For Mortgages
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Fixed Rates Fall For Mortgages
WASHINGTON -- Fixed-rate home mortgages fell in the latest week to their lowest levels since the spring of 2004, according to a Freddie Mac survey.
The national average interest rate on the benchmark 30-year, fixed- rate loan averaged 5.48% in the week ended yesterday, down from 5.69% a week ago and 6.25% a year ago.
The rate hasn't been lower since late March 2004, when it averaged 5.40%.
The 15-year fixed-rate loan averaged 4.95%, down from 5.21% a week ago and 5.98% a year ago.
The five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage averaged 5.13%, compared with 5.40% a week ago and 6% a year ago.
The Federal Reserve's rate cut this week "was extraordinary in both the magnitude and the timing of the rate cut," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. "The last time the Fed decided to ease the target federal-funds rate in an unscheduled meeting was immediately after Sept. 11, 2001. As a result, mortgage rates continued trending down for the fourth consecutive week across loan products."
