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The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage this week fell below 4 percent for the first time ever, to 3.94 percent. For those who can qualify, it's an extraordinary opportunity to buy or refinance. And mortgage rates could fall even further now that the Federal Reserve plans to reshuffle its portfolio of securities to try and lower long-term rates. On Thursday, Freddie Mac said the average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage dropped from 4.01 percent last week, the previous low. The average rate on a 15-year fixed loan, a popular refinancing option, dipped to 3.26 percent, also a...

Long-term mortgage rates fell to the lowest levels since Freddie Mac began keeping track this week. Freddie Mac’s (NYSE: FRE) weekly rate report says a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.69 percent in the week ending June 24, down from 4.75 percent last week. A year ago, 30-year mortgages averaged 5.42 percent. The average rate on a 15-year fixed rate mortgage fell to 4.13 percent this week, the lowest in at least two decades. A one-year adjustable-rate mortgage averaged 3.77 percent, down from 3.82 percent last week. While low mortgage rates remain a stimulus for housing sales, the loss of the...

WASHINGTON – Mortgage rates fell this week to the lowest level on record, giving consumers added incentive to lock in low payments on home purchases and refinancings. Mortgage company Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average rate for 30-year fixed loans sank to 4.69 percent, from 4.75 percent last week. That's the lowest since Freddie Mac began tracking rates in 1971. The previous record of 4.71 percent was set in December. Rates for 15-year and five-year mortgages also hit lows. Mortgage rates have fallen over the past two months. Investors wary of the European debt crisis and the turbulent stock...

A day after the Senate passed its version of a sweeping financial overhaul bill, the banking industry fired a warning shot at Washington -- and anyone looking to buy a house -- that rules restricting banks' use of derivatives may crimp an already vulnerable housing recovery. Strongly hinting that average Joes could become collateral damage as a result of Congress' hard-line approach to regulating banks, Wall Street warned that the cost of home ownership could surge as a result of rules that prevent banks from using a form of derivatives called swaps, which help banks hedge against interest-rate risk and...

WASHINGTON (AP) - The era of record-low mortgage rates is over. The average rate on a 30-year loan has jumped from about 5 percent to more than 5.3 percent in just the past week. As mortgages get more expensive, more would-be homeowners are priced out of the market—a threat to the fragile recovery in the housing market. And if you wanted to refinance at a super-low rate, you may have missed your chance. Mortgages under 4 percent are still available, but only for loans that reset in five or seven years, probably to higher rates. Rates are going up because...

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- The Treasury Department may float a plan to reduce mortgage rates on new mortgages to boost the housing market, The Wall Street Journal reported late Wednesday on its Web site,

WASHINGTON (AP) - Mortgage rates around the country fell this week, with rates on 30-year mortgages dipping to the second lowest level of the year, pushed down by further signs of economic weakness. Mortgage giant Freddie Mac reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.11 percent, down from 6.14 percent last week. It marked the fourth straight weekly decline in rates. The only time rates have been lower this year was the week of Jan. 19 when the 30-year mortgage dipped to 6.10 percent. All categories of mortgage rates surveyed by Freddie Mac declined this week. Rates on 15-year, fixed-rate...

WASHINGTON - Rates on 30-year mortgages climbed this week to their highest point in nearly four years, a development that could put a further crimp in housing activity. Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reported Thursday that rates on 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.49 percent for the week ending April 13. That was up from 6.43 percent last week and was the highest since mid-July of 2002. Mortgage rates rose as Wall Street investors fretted that an improving jobs climate could drive up wages and thus inflation, analysts said. Those fears were fanned by a government report last week showing the...

WASHINGTON, June 10 (Reuters) - Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan this week added to a chorus of worry about the growth of home loans seen as far riskier than the 30-year mortgage that has been U.S. housing's bedrock for decades. Those alternatives, called "exotic" by the Fed chief on Thursday, have played a big role in sustaining the four-year housing boom by making homes more affordable, which in turn stoked demand and drove prices higher and higher. But these hundreds of alternative mortgage products have also injected more risk into the market -- both for lenders and borrowers, according to...

30-year mortgage rate slips to 5.69 percent, lowest in six months. Details soon.

<p>WASHINGTON — After a month of declines, rates on benchmark 30-year mortgages rose sharply this week amid increasing signs the economic rebound is gaining momentum.</p> <p>15-year fixed U.S. 5.26% 0.6 points S.E. 5.28% 0.6 points Source: www.freddiemac.com.</p> <p>For the week ending Oct. 10, the average rate on 30-year mortgages increased to 5.95 percent, compared with 5.77 percent a week ago, the mortgage company Freddie Mac reported Thursday in its weekly nationwide survey.</p>

<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — Rates on 30-year mortgages climbed this week to the highest level since last summer. The average rate rose to 6.44% for the week ending Sept. 5, up from 6.32% last week, Freddie Mac, the mortgage giant, reported Thursday in its weekly nationwide survey.</p>

Sun August 10, 2003 11:44 AM ET By Aleksandrs Rozens NEW YORK, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Hank and Betty Cahill, retirees in Osterville, Massachusetts, had no plans to use their home to borrow money, but that changed when Betty needed costly treatments for cancer. The couple -- in their 80s and avid boaters in the waters around Cape Cod -- took out a "reverse mortgage" that pays them money each month. "We could have done without it, but it would have been one hell of a strain," Hank Cahill said. "Things aren't cheap. Age catches up with you. You see...

Thu August 7, 2003 01:14 PM ET WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. 30-year fixed-rate mortgages rose for the seventh consecutive week as an improving economy sent home loans to their highest level in a year, mortgage finance firm Freddie Mac said on Thursday. Thirty-year mortgage rates averaged 6.34 percent this week, up from 6.14 percent last week and the highest since Aug. 2, 2002, when they averaged 6.43 percent. Freddie Mac said rates on 15-year mortgages rose for an eighth straight week to an average of 5.66 percent -- the highest since 5.70 percent in late October and up from 5.44...

Low to moderate income families in the market for purchasing their first homes may be eligible for low-interest rate mortgages and down payment and closing cost assistance of up to $15,000 through Florida Housing's First-Time Homebuyer program. In November 2002, Florida Housing made $50 million available statewide through participating lenders for families purchasing their first homes. In June 2003, an additional $50 million was made available. These 30-year, fixed mortgages are available to eligible applicants at a rate of 5.10 percent. This rate combined with down payment and closing cost assistance will further reduce the overall effective interest rate....

Sunday, August 03, 2003 - Post/ Thomas McKAy, Aldo Svaldi Tim McDonald and his staff at Wells Fargo Home Mortgage in Denver have harvested a whirlwind the past few months. "Picture every homeowner wanting to refinance," said McDonald, a regional manager. "It was like drinking out of a fire hydrant."A sharp rise in long-term interest rates over the last few weeks could give McDonald and his crew a chance to catch up with their backlog and take a needed rest.But if they rest for too long, some analysts worry, the country's fragile economic recovery could falter."Consumers are in a very...

If you wanted to snag a mortgage at rock-bottom interest rates, you've waited too long. Mortgage interest rates, which plummeted in June to their lowest level in 40 years, took their biggest jump in almost two years in the week that ended Wednesday. ''The jump in rates throws cold water on the refinancing fire,'' said Greg McBride, financial analyst at Bankrate.com, in a telephone interview. The rates on 30-year fixed mortgages are now the highest in nine months. The average interest rate today is 6.26 percent, according to a weekly survey of the 100 largest lenders by Bankrate.com. The lowest...

Wed July 30, 2003 08:41 AM ET By Aleksandrs Rozens NEW YORK (Reuters) - The year's highest interest rates pushed down demand for mortgage refinancings in the United States to lows not seen since last December, an industry survey reported on Wednesday. The drop in demand diminishes the key support that housing has provided the U.S. economy in recent years. Rates for 30-year loans, the most commonly used home mortgage, rose to 5.87 percent in the latest week from 5.72 percent in the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association of America. "The 30-year contract rate is at highs...

<p>Demand for home loans drying up as mortgage rates continue to climb.</p> <p>NEW YORK (Reuters) - A rise in interest rates dampened demand for home mortgage refinancings and loans for home purchases last week, an industry survey reported Wednesday.</p> <p>The drop in demand diminishes the key support that housing has provided the U.S. economy in recent years.</p>

For education and discussion only. Not for commercial use.Lenders, brokers, title cos. cope with enormous decline in business The longest-running home loan refinance boom in the history of the mortgage sector came to a sudden end this month after long-term interest rates spiked nearly 1 percentage point in just a few weeks. The Mortgage Bankers Association of America forecasts that mortgage production volume will reach a record $3.39 trillion this year, then plunge to $1.9 trillion next year. "Obviously, going from 20 million loans a year to 13 million loans a year will be a hit on everybody," said James...

By Richard Leong NEW YORK (Reuters) - Americans, unnerved that they may be about to miss out on the lowest mortgage rates in their lifetime, are working their phones and computers to lock in rates before they head even higher. In less than a month interest rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages, the most popular home loan in the United States, have risen half a percentage point from their 45-year lows. Mortgage rates closely track the U.S. Treasuries market, where yields on the benchmark 10-year note have spiked in the last month in the wake of the upbeat economic outlook the...

Business Editors/Real Estate & Personal Finance Writers LIVONIA, Mich.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 16, 2003--Mortgage rates have skyrocketed almost a full percentage point since hitting record 40-year lows the week of June 13, prompting many to wonder if this marks the end to the record low mortgage rates that have fueled record home sales and refinancing activity the past several years. Mortgage rates have inched upward in recent weeks. A month ago, the rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged about 5.2 percent. Today, the rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage is nearing six percent. "Time may be running out for those...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Federal Reserve is prepared this week to drop a key interest rate to its lowest level since President Eisenhower's second term. The central bank would be aiming to stave off an economic threat absent since the Great Depression - deflation, a prolonged and widespread decline in prices. Policy-makers have mounted a virtuoso performance over the past six weeks to influence financial markets without even cutting rates. That should allay any worries that the Fed is in danger of running out of ammunition to stimulate the economy with interest rates already so low. Analysts refer to the...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - In 1987, Leif Thomsen started brokering mortgages out of his spare bedroom. This year, thanks to a U.S. mortgage market that should easily top 2002's $2.6 trillion record, he expects to earn as much as a movie star With consumers hungry to take advantage of the lowest mortgage rates since Dwight Eisenhower was U.S. president, Thomsen's company, Walpole, Massachusetts-based Mortgage Master Inc., has been mediating about $700 million worth of home loans a month. This is more than double last year's pace, when Thomsen's personal earnings were about $10 million. "We're drowning," he said. "We can't...

By Dan Wilchins NEW YORK, June 4 (Reuters) - A record number of Americans applied for mortgages last week as the lowest borrowing rates in over four decades spurred consumers to buy homes and refinance home loans. According to the Mortgage Bankers Association of America on Wednesday, applications for home loans rose 13.6 percent last week, after the 30-year mortgage rate fell to 5.13 percent, its lowest level since the MBA began its weekly survey in 1990. By other measures, rates last week reached their lowest level since 1958, according to Bankrate.com. "The housing market can't help but do well...

A friend of mine called yesterday to say that his brother who lives in Norway, just mortgaged his house with a Japanese based mortgage at...get this...2%. Does anyone know of any way of connecting up with the Japanese investor mortgage market? I am interested!! At 2% I could drop to a 10 year mortgage and still pay for the three I have in orthodontics...that's right...THREE!!

With mortgage rates setting new lows last week, a growing number of homeowners are doing something that was largely unheard of just a year ago: taking out 10-year mortgages. It's part of a broader push by many borrowers to pay off their mortgages quickly by taking advantage of the lowest interest rates in more than 40 years. Some are baby boomers who want to get rid of their debt before they retire. Others are simply trying to save on interest costs by shortening their mortgages. The interest savings on a 10-year mortgage are enormous. If someone borrowed $250,000 at 4.5...

<p>IT'S AS IF YOU WOKE UP to find that a healthy breakfast consists of steak and eggs after sticking to bran muffins for years. That's the position the Federal Reserve now finds itself in. After a generation of fighting -- and defeating-inflation -- it's now confronting the possibility of the opposite problem. And as Fed Chairman Greenspan admitted to the Joint Economic Committee (JEC) of Congress last week, the monetary authorities neither thought that deflation was possible nor know much about how to fight it.</p>

Mortgage rates on 30 year home loans hit record low today of 5.45%.(Full article at CBS marketwatch)