BOND YIELDS PUSH MORTGAGE RATES HIGHER THIS
WEEK
Only the 1-Year ARM Is Lower
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 4.91 percent with an average 0.7 point
for the week ending May 28, 2009, up from last week when it averaged 4.82
percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.08 percent.
The 15-year FRM this week averaged 4.53 percent with an
average 0.7 point, up from last week when it averaged 4.50 percent. A year
ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 5.66 percent.
Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate
mortgages (ARMs) averaged 4.82 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point,
up from last week when it averaged 4.79 percent. A year
ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 5.62 percent.
One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs averaged 4.69 percent this
week with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it
averaged 4.82 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 5.22
percent. The 1-year ARM has not been lower since the week ending September
29, 2005, when it averaged 4.68 percent.
(Average commitment rates should be reported along with
average fees and points to reflect the total cost of obtaining the
mortgage.)
"Fixed-rate mortgage rates followed long-term bond yields
higher this week as financial markets try to discern the state of the
economy," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief
economist. "Consumer confidence rose again in May and represented the
largest two-month rally since records began in 1967. According to the
National Association for Business Economics, the consensus of a recent
survey of 45 professional forecasters called for the recession to end in the
second half of this year, but the recovery is to be more moderate than the
previous survey.
"Housing continues to be a drag on the economy, however.
Although single-family existing home sales rose 2.5 percent in April,
inventories of homes for sale also rose to 9.6 months from 9.0 in March,
according to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR). Moreover, the NAR
noted that sales of distressed homes made up 45 percent of the purchases in
April. Such types of sales mixed with a large supply of unsold homes keep
depressing house prices. For example, a new research report from the Federal
Housing Finance Agency found that sales of distressed homes accelerated the
measured decline in California's home values by 5.3% from the peak in 2006
through the first quarter of 2009."
Freddie Mac was established by Congress in 1970 to provide
liquidity, stability and affordability to the nation's residential mortgage
markets. Freddie Mac supports communities across the nation by providing
mortgage capital to lenders. Over the years, Freddie Mac has made home
possible for one in six homebuyers and more than five million renters.
