Mortgage rates have declined for the majority of the year, and they have hit another record low for 2014, Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey found.
The 30-year, fixed rate mortgage averaged 3.80% for the week ended Dec. 18, down from last week’s 3.93%. In 2013, it averaged 4.47%.
In addition, the 15-year, FRM came in at 3.09%, falling from 3.20% last week and 3.52% a year ago.
The 5-year, Treasury-indexed ARM was 2.38%, compared to 2.98% a week prior and 3.00% last year.
The 1-year, Treasury-indexed ARM decreased to 2.38%, a drop from 2.40% a week ago. A year ago, it sat at 2.56%.
“The 30-year fixed mortgage rate dropped to its lowest point of 2014 this week. Mortgage rates fell along with 10-year Treasury yields, which closed at their lowest level since May 2013. November housing starts came in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.028 million starts, down 1.6% from an upwardly-revised October value,” said Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist with Freddie Mac.
“Housing starts for the calendar year will likely come in around 1 million, above the 2013 pace but lower than forecasters had expected at the start of 2014. Consumer prices declined more than expected in November, with CPI contracting 0.3%,” he continued.
Meanwhile, Bankrate posted similar results, recording that mortgage rates moved lower for the sixth consecutive week.
The 30-year, fixed fell to 3.94%, down from 4.03%.
The 15-year, fixed dropped to 3.21%, down from 3.28% a week ago, while the 5/1 ARM decreased to 3.21%, down from 3.26% last week.
