30-year fixed-rate at highest level since May

By Inman News, Thursday, December 30, 2010

Rates on most mortgages continued their year-end surge in the final week of 2010, with 30-year fixed-rate loans climbing to their highest level since May, Freddie Mac said in releasing the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey.

Rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 4.86 percent with an average 0.8 point for the week ending Dec. 30, up from 4.81 percent the week before, but still below the 5.14 percent recorded at the same point in 2009.

The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.2 percent with an average 0.8 point, up from 4.15 percent the week before but down from 4.54 percent a year ago.

Rates on 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) loans averaged 3.77 percent with an average 0.7 point, up from 3.75 percent the week before but down from 4.44 percent a year ago.

The 1-year Treasury-indexed ARM was the only mortgage tracked by Freddie Mac to see rates ease. The 1-year ARM averaged 3.26 percent wth an average 0.6 point, down from 3.4 percent the week before and 4.33 percent a year ago.

Rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages hit a record low of 4.19 percent in mid-October, and averaged 4.7 percent for the year as a whole.