Rates Decline

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 5.94% for the week ending Oct. 31 from 6.05% the previous week, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate fell from 5.39% to 5.26%, and the average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed adjustable-rate mortgages declined from 3.76% to 3.74%. Fees and points averaged 0.6 points for fixed-rate mortgages and 0.7 points for ARMs. "Gross domestic product numbers surprised everyone today, posting a much larger-than-expected increase and confirming the notion that the economy has finally turned the corner," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "Worry about disinflation should now be tempered somewhat, but fear of inflation is still unwarranted. And that should keep mortgage rates from rising too quickly or steeply anytime in the near future." A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 6.13% and 5.51%, respectively, and the average one-year ARM rate was 4.25%, Freddie Mac said.