Rates Climb

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose from 6.25% to 6.34% over the seven-day period ended Feb. 1, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate rose from 5.98% to 6.06%, the average rate for five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages climbed from 6.00% to 6.04%, and the average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed ARMs increased from 5.49% to 5.54%, Freddie Mac reported. Fees and points averaged 0.4 of a point for fixed-rate mortgages, 0.6 of a point for hybrid ARMs, and 0.7 of a point for one-year ARMs. "Interest rates moved higher following the latest upbeat economic news," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "The strong 3.5% annualized growth in the economy over the final quarter of 2006 occurred while inflation moderated." A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 6.23% and 5.81%, respectively, and the average hybrid and one-year ARM rates were 5.87% and 5.33%, respectively, Freddie Mac said. Freddie Mac can be found online at http://www.freddiemac.com.