NEW YORK, May 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Mortgage rates were all over the map this week, with the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate inching higher to 5.24 percent. According to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey, the average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.43 discount and origination points.
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The average 15-year fixed rate mortgage slipped to 4.74 percent, while the average jumbo 30-year fixed rate plunged to 6.37 percent. Adjustable rate mortgages were also mixed, with the average 1-year ARM retreating to 4.94 percent and the 5-year ARM jumping to 4.96 percent.
Mortgage rates haven't seen much volatility lately. The economy remains very weak, and those concerns are balancing out the worries investors have about the amount of government debt issuance. Mortgage rates are closely related to long-term government bonds. The prospect of ongoing purchases of government and mortgage-backed debt, as well as the possibility that the Fed could increase the pace of those purchases should conditions warrant, will help keep a lid on rates for the balance of 2009.
Mortgage rates are near historic lows. Six months ago, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 6.33 percent, meaning a $200,000 loan would have carried a monthly payment of $1,241.86. With the average rate now more than one percentage point lower at 5.24 percent, the monthly payment for the same size loan would be $1,103.17, a savings of $138 per month for a homeowner refinancing now.
SURVEY RESULTS
30-year fixed: 5.24% -- up from 5.21% last week (avg. points: 0.43)
15-year fixed: 4.74% -- down from 4.76% last week (avg. points: 0.43)
5/1 ARM: 4.96% -- up from 4.81% last week (avg. points: 0.53)
Bankrate's national weekly mortgage survey is conducted each Wednesday from data provided by the top 10 banks and thrifts in the top 10 markets.
For a full analysis of this week's move in mortgage rates, go to http://www.bankrate.com/mortgagerates
The survey is complemented by Bankrate's weekly forward-looking Rate Trend Index, in which a panel of mortgage experts predicts which way the rates are headed over the next 30 to 45 days. There only consensus among the panelists this week is that rates aren't going anywhere for awhile, with 55 percent expecting mortgage rates to remain more or less unchanged.
