FHFA Reports Average Interest Rate Hits 3.35 Percent Nationwide in January

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has reported that the National Average Contract Mortgage Rate for the Purchase of Previously Occupied Homes by Combined Lenders, used as an index in some adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) contracts, was 3.35 percent based on loans closed in January. There was an increase of 0.06 from the previous month. The average interest rate on conventional, 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage loans of $417,000 or less increased six basis points to 3.53 in January. These rates are calculated from the FHFA’s Monthly Interest Rate Survey of purchase-money mortgages. These results reflect loans closed during the Jan. 25-31 period. Typically, the interest rate is determined 30 to 45 days before the loan is closed. Thus, the reported rates depict market conditions prevailing in mid- to late-December. National Average Contract Mortgage rate on the composite of all mortgage loans (fixed- and adjustable-rate) was 3.34 percent in January, up six basis points from 3.28 percent in December. The effective interest rate, which reflects the amortization of initial fees and charges, was 3.46 percent in January, up four basis points from 3.42 percent in December. This report contains no data on adjustable-rate mortgages due to insufficient sample size. Initial fees and charges were 0.95 percent of the loan balance in January, down 20 basis points from December. Twenty-six percent of the purchase-money mortgage loans originated in January were “no-point” mortgages, up from 11 percent from the share in December. The average term was 27.1 years in January, down 0.3 years from December. The average loan-to-price ratio in January was 76.4 percent, up 0.1 percent from 76.3 percent in December. The average loan amount was $254,700 in January down $19,400 from $274,100 in December.