Rates Creep Up

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose to 5.77% for the seven-day period ending May 12 from 5.75% the previous week, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate increased from 5.31% to 5.33%, the average rate for five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages climbed from 5.16% to 5.21%, while the average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed ARMs crept up from 4.22% to 4.23%. Fees and points averaged 0.5 of a point for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages and 0.6 of a point for the other three mortgage categories. "According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, purchase applications hit a record high last week, and this can be directly attributed to continuing low mortgage rates," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "The bond market isn’t exactly sure how fast or slow the economy will expand in the long term, and thus bond yields have remained remarkably low." A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 6.34% and 5.72%, respectively, and the average one-year ARM rate was 3.90%, Freddie Mac said. Freddie Mac can be found online at http://www.freddiemac.com.