Mortgage Loan Rates at 3-Year Low

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By Paul Ausick Updated Published
Mortgage Loan Rates at 3-Year Low

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The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released its report on mortgage applications Wednesday morning, noting a week-over-week increase of 0.4% in the group’s seasonally adjusted composite index for the week ending May 6. Mortgage loan rates moved lower on all fixed-rate mortgages last week, while the rate on adjustables ticked higher.

On an unadjusted basis, the composite index increased by 1% week over week. The seasonally adjusted purchase index increased by 0.4% compared with the week ended April 29. The unadjusted purchase index increased by 1% for the week and is now 14% higher year over year.

The MBA’s refinance index increased by 0.5% week over week and the percentage of all new applications that were seeking refinancing fell from 52.9% to 52.8%.

Adjustable rate mortgage loans accounted for 5.7% of all applications, up from 5.3% in the previous week.
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The good news for this week is that mortgage rates reached a three-year low on Tuesday. According to Mortgage News Daily, rates for top-tier borrowers now range between 3.500% and 3.625% on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages.

According to the MBA, last week’s average mortgage loan rate for a conforming 30-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased from 3.87% to 3.82%. The rate for a jumbo 30-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased from 3.79% to 3.74%. The average interest rate for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased from 3.13% to 3.06%.

The contract interest rate for a 5/1 adjustable rate mortgage loan rose from 2.91% to 2.93%. Rates on a 30-year FHA-backed fixed-rate loan dropped from 3.69% to 3.64%.

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About the Author Paul Ausick →

Paul Ausick has been writing for 247Wallst.com for more than a decade. He has written extensively on investing in the energy, defense, and technology sectors. In a previous life, he wrote technical documentation and managed a marketing communications group in Silicon Valley.

He has a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Chicago and now lives in Montana, where he fishes for trout in the summer and stays inside during the winter.

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