Mortgage Rates Remain Relatively Stable, Again

By: Jann Swanson • Wed, May 16 2007, 7:00 AM

Once more there was little movement in the mortgage markets during the week ended May 10, especially for fixed rate mortgages (FRM).

The 30-year FRM averaged 6.15 percent with 0.5 point compared to 6.16 percent and 0.5 point the previous week while the 15-year FRM was unchanged at 5.87 percent and 0.5 points.

Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs averaged 5.89 percent, an increase of two basis points. Fees and points were unchanged at 0.6.

One-year Treasury indexed ARM's averaged 5.48 percent with 0.7 points. During the week ended May 13 the average was 5.42 percent with 0.7 point.

"Low employment growth in April - the slowest pace since November 2004 - and downward revisions to both February and March job growth tempered market concerns of future increases in the rate of inflation," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. "As a result, mortgage rates were little changed this week."

The Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ended May 11 showed a little more definitive movement - in opposite directions.

In the MBA survey the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages increased 12 basis points to 6.13 percent with points, including the origination fee, decreasing to 1.47 from 1.48.

15-year fixed-rate mortgages were virtually unchanged, losing one basis point to 5.81 percent with points increasing to 1.35 from 1.25

The average contract interest rate for one-year ARMs showed healthy movement, decreasing to 5.61 from 5.71 percent, with points increasing to 1.13 from 0.73.

Applications were down, decreasing 0.8 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis and 0.6 percent on an unadjusted basis from the previous week. The application volume was up 13.8 percent from the same week in 2006.

Refinancing as a share of all mortgage activity was up to 42.1 percent from 41.8 percent a week earlier while the share of ARMs fell yet again from 18 percent to 17.4 percent.