Wow, can anyone remember 18% mortgage rates under Pres. Jimmy Carter? I can.
This is so amazing that rates are STILL under 5%. And some are probably still thinking they are too high!
By NATHAN BECKER
Mortgage rates rose slightly, with the average rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages climbing for a fourth straight week, according to Freddie Mac’s weekly survey of mortgage rates.
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.91% in the week ended Thursday, up slightly from the prior week’s 4.87% but down from 5.07% a year earlier.
Mortgage rates generally track U.S. bond yields, which move inversely to Treasury prices. Rates have climbed this year after slumping most of last year when prices rallied on economic uncertainty.
Rates on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 4.13% in the latest week, up from 4.1% in the previous week but down from 4.4% a year earlier.
Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages were 3.78%, up from the prior week’s 3.72% but down from 4.08% a year earlier. One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs were 3.25%, up from 3.22% but down from 4.13%, respectively.
To obtain the rates, the 15-year fixed-rate mortgages required payment of an average 0.7 point and the others required an average 0.6 point. A point is 1% of the mortgage amount, charged as prepaid interest.
Write to Nathan Becker at nathan.becker@dowjones.com