Average mortgage rates tracked by Freddie Mac’s survey all climbed slightly for the second week in a row but they remain below year-ago levels.
The average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage was 4.86% with an average of 0.7 of a point during the week ending March 31, up from 4.81% last week but down from 5.08% a year ago.
For 15-year FRMs, the average rate during the most recent week was 4.09% with an average of 0.7 of a point, up from 4.04% the previous week but down from 4.39% a year ago.
The average rate for a five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage during the week ending March 31 was 3.7% with an average of 0.7 of a point, up from 3.62% the previous week but down from 4.1% a year ago.
For one-year ARMs, the average rate during the most recent week was 3.26% with an average of 0.6 of a point, up from 3.21% last week but down from 4.05% a year ago.
Although the 10-year Treasury yield that is considered a rough indicator of the 30-year mortgage rate has generally trended upward over the past week to levels near 3.5% from levels closer to 3.3%, it was slightly lower at press time late Thursday morning when it was at 3.46%.
Signs that inflation may be in check have prevented mortgage rates from rising higher, according to Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist Frank Nothaft’s weekly report.
Nothaft noted that inflation as measured by the 12-month growth in the core price index for consumer spending, an indicator he said is preferred by the Fed, is near its lowest pace seen since its origins in the 1960s.
