Mortgage Rates: Mixed On The Down Side

Halfway into the month of February an assessment of bank mortgage rates shows mixed results, with the benchmark 30 yr fixed mortgage interest rates which is in interest are going down slightly at 4.750%.

With the housing market continuing to look for a way out of the difficulties of recent years, interest rate changes can be seen as indicating the market's take on both the formidable backlog of unsold homes and the federal government's perceived course in determining new policies which will impact the housing and finance industries.

Interest rates on 15 year mortgage rates also dropped, to 4.250%. Those of 5/1 ARM loans remained steady at 3.250%. Borrowers with good credit continue to be able to benefit from historically low interest rates with 0.7% to 1% origination point. Conforming fixed rate mortgages are popular with borrowers as they offer set mortgage payments each month during the life of a mortgage.

In the most recent auction of 10-year Treasuries there was strong interest on the buy side despite continuing talk in international finance circles of perhaps displacing the dollar as the world's main reserve currency. Such talk gathered momentum this past week as both the International Monetary Fund and the French government offered opinions backing a move to another currency or more likely a combination of currencies.

FHA 30-year fixed refinance mortgage rates remain at 4.625% while those of FHA 15-year fixed rate mortgages are steady at 4.000 %. Rates for FHA 5/1 ARM loans saw a rise to 3.625%. FHA mortgages require lower down payments making them particularly sought after by many home buyers. Higher closing costs due to FHA fees as well as an upfront mortgage insurance premium mitigate this built in advantage, however.

The 30-year fixed jumbo mortgage rates and interest remains at 5.500%, while 15-year fixed jumbo mortgage interest rates have increased to 5.250% and jumbo 5/1 ARM loan rates come in at 4.125%. These represent the best jumbo mortgage rates extended on 0.7% to 1% origination fee to borrowers with the best credit.

Rates at Wells Fargo California for 30-year fixed mortgages are 5.125% (5.444% APR) which represents a slight drop. Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS) prices started the day down, then increased +3/32 (FNMA 30-year 4.5 at 100.28). Data being released during the week may result in some volatility and changes to mortgage rates.

bank mortgage rates
30 year mortgage rates