Fixed Rates Dip

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 5.74% for the week ending Jan. 14 from 5.77% the previous week, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate fell from 5.21% to 5.19%, the average rate for five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages rose from 5.03% to 5.05%, and the average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed ARMs was unchanged at 4.10%. Fees and points averaged 0.6 of a point for fixed-rate mortgages and one-year ARMs, and 0.5 of a point for five-year hybrid ARMs. "The onset of 2005 bodes well for the housing industry," said Amy Crews Cutts, Freddie Mac's deputy chief economist. ".... Although we expect mortgage rates to end the year a bit higher, they still provide a historic value to borrowers, considering how over the past 30 years fixed-rate mortgages have averaged about 9.5%." A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 5.66% and 4.97%, respectively, and the average one-year ARM rate was 3.62%, Freddie Mac said. Freddie Mac can be found online at http://www.freddiemac.com.