Rates Climb

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose to 6.19% for the week ending Dec. 6 from 6.13% the previous week, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate rose from 5.57% to 5.60%, while the average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed adjustable-rate mortgages increased from 4.19% to 4.21%. Fees and points averaged 0.6 points for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages and 0.5 points for ARMs and 30-year FRMs. "Consumer spending has kept the economy moving, and when initial holiday sales were better than expected, financial markets reacted with enthusiasm," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "It was this potential pick-up in the economy that caused interest rates, including mortgage rates, to drift upwards this week." A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 6.84% and 6.30%, respectively, and the average one-year ARM rate was 5.21%, Freddie Mac said. Freddie Mac can be found on the Web at http://www.freddiemac.com.