Rates Drop

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate dropped to 6.16% for the week ending Sept. 5 from 6.44% the previous week, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate fell from 5.77% to 5.46%, and the average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed adjustable-rate mortgages declined from 3.98% to 3.87%. Fees and points averaged 0.6 points for all three mortgage categories. "The release of the August jobs report showed a continuation of the jobless recovery, which served to stem some of the enthusiasm in the Treasury bond market," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "This, of course, caused interest rates, including mortgage rates, to ease back from the highest level we had seen in a year." Mr. Nothaft also pointed to 15.7% annualized growth in single-family mortgage debt outstanding in the second quarter as "one more sign" that the second quarter was a "record period" for the housing industry. A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 6.18% and 5.59%, respectively, and the average one-year ARM rate was 4.32%, Freddie Mac said. Freddie Mac can be found online at http://www.freddiemac.com.