Fixed Rates Plunge; ARMs at Record Low

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate dropped to 5.41% for the week ending March 12 from 5.59% the previous week, while the average rate for adjustable-rate mortgages sank to a record low, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate fell from 4.88% to 4.69%, and the average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed ARMs declined from 3.47% to 3.41%, the lowest the rate has been since Freddie Mac began tracking it in 1984. Fees and points averaged 0.6 of a point for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages and ARMs and 0.7 of a point for 15-year FRMs. "As we had predicted earlier in the month, interest rates for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages edged closer to last year's record low figures," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "For the year as a whole, we expect long-term rates may be even lower annually than they were in 2003." A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 5.59% and 4.93%, respectively, and the average one-year ARM rate was 3.68%, Freddie Mac said. Freddie Mac can be found online at http://www.freddiemac.com.