Rates Drift Down

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 5.91% for the week ending Jan. 24 from 5.97% the previous week, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate fell from 5.36% to 5.31%, while the average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed adjustable-rate mortgages dropped from 4.03% to 3.93%. Fees and points averaged 0.6 points for fixed-rate mortgages and 0.7 points for ARMs. "Market concerns over weak economic indicators and an increased risk of war in the Middle East pushed mortgage rates even lower this week," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "That and falling stock prices raised investor appeal for U.S. Treasury bonds, which in turn allowed most interest rates to drift even lower." A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 6.96% and 6.44%, respectively, and the average one-year ARM rate was 5.10%, Freddie Mac said. Freddie Mac can be found on the Web at http://www.freddiemac.com.