Freddie Mac PMMS: Lower than expected inflation and weaker housing allowed most mortgage rates to easeMortgagePress.comFreddie Mac, Primary Mortgage Market Survey, ARMs, statistics
Freddie Mac has released the results of its Primary Mortgage
Market Survey (PMMS) in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM)
averaged 6.04 percent with an average 0.6 point for the week ending
Oct. 23, 2008, down from last week when it averaged 6.46 percent.
Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.33 percent.
The 15-year FRM this week averaged 5.72 percent with an average
0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 6.14 percent. A
year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 5.99 percent.
Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages
(ARMs) averaged 6.06 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point,
down from last week when it averaged 6.14 percent. A year ago, the
5-year ARM averaged 6.03 percent.
One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs averaged 5.23 percent this week
with an average 0.5 point, up from last week when it averaged 5.16
percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 5.66
percent.
Average commitment rates should be reported along with average
fees and points to reflect the total cost of obtaining the
mortgage.
"Long-term mortgage rates fell this week amid news of tame
inflation and a weaker housing market," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie
Mac vice president and chief economist. "Consumer prices were
unchanged in September and core prices, which exclude food and
energy products, rose by only 0.1 percentage point, all below the
market consensus. On a year-over-year basis growth in core consumer
prices remained at a 2.5 percent clip.
"New construction on one-family homes fell 12 percent in
September to an annual rate of 544,000 homes, the lowest since
February 1982. One-unit housing starts are now 70 percent below its
peak set in January 2006, according to the Department of Commerce.
Meanwhile, homebuilder confidence reached an all-time record low in
October since the National Association of Homebuilders first began
polling in January 1985."
For more information, visit www.freddiemac.com..
