Mortgage rates break out of holding pattern and fall: Freddie

Mortgage interest rates fell after four consecutive weeks of holding steady, according to Freddie Mac.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.10% for the week ending Feb. 16, down six basis points from last week. A year ago at this time, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.64%.

The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage similarly dipped five basis points week over week to 3.32%. A year ago, the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 2.94%.

The five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage only dropped two basis points from the previous week to 3.14. At the same time in 2016, it averaged 2.84%.

"The 10-year Treasury yield remained relatively flat this week, while the 30-year mortgage rate fell 6 basis points," Freddie Mac chief economist Sean Becketti said in a news release. "Since the beginning of the year, the 10-year Treasury yield has covered a 22 basis point range. The range of movement for the 30-year has been half that, just 11 basis points."