ARM Rate Hits Record Low

The average rate for adjustable-rate mortgages hit a record low of 3.89% for the week ending Jan. 31, while the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell slightly from 5.91% the previous week to 5.90%, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed ARMs dipped from 3.93% to 3.89%, the lowest level since Freddie Mac began tracking it in 1984. The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate fell from 5.31% to 5.28%. Fees and points averaged 0.6 points for fixed-rate mortgages and 0.7 points for ARMs. "Mortgage rates are currently in a kind of limbo, with no impetus to drive the figures either up or down," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "Risks seem to be pretty evenly balanced .... The upside risk would be rapid economic growth and inflation, while the downside might be extended hostilities in the Mideast or a wider scope of weakness in the economy." A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 7.02% and 6.51%, respectively, and the average one-year ARM rate was 5.12%, Freddie Mac said. Freddie Mac can be found on the Web at http://www.freddiemac.com.