NEW YORK – For the third week in a row and the fifth time in the last six weeks, mortgage rates have declined as the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady for the first meeting since May 2004.
Average 30-year fixed rate mortgages fell to 6.57 percent, the lowest they have been since April 19. Additionally average 15-year fixed rate mortgages dropped to 6.25 percent. The later mortgages are popular for refinancing.
This pattern also held true for larger loans and adjustable rate mortgages. The average jumbo 30- year fixed rate declined to 6.79 percent while the average 5/1 adjustable rate mortgage went down to 6.32 percent. The average one-year ARM fell to 6.01 percent.
Since the Fed increased rates at the end of June fixed mortgage rates have fallen more than one-third of a percentage point. At the end of June the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 6.93 percent, meaning that the monthly payment on a loan of $165,000 was $1,090. With the decrease to 6.57 percent the same loan would carry a monthly payment of $1,050.52.