Rates Fall Further

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 5.64% for the week ending Oct. 29 from 5.69% the previous week, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate fell from 5.07% to 5.01%, while the average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed ARMs declined from 4.02% to 3.96%. Fees and points averaged 0.7 of a point for fixed-rate mortgages and 0.8 of a point for ARMs. "Home sales are very sensitive to mortgage rates," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "Low mortgage rates drove the uptick in sales during September. And with mortgage rates at their lowest level in six months, home sales should continue strong through the autumn months." A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 6.05% and 5.39%, respectively, and the average one-year ARM rate was 3.76%, Freddie Mac said. Freddie Mac can be found online at http://www.freddiemac.com.