Rates Nearly Unchanged

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate inched up to 6.92% for the week ending Aug. 21 from 6.91% the week before, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate crept up to 6.61% from 6.60% the previous week, and the average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed adjustable-rate mortgages dipped to 5.58% from 5.60%. Fees and points averaged 1.1 for all three categories. "Housing continues to be strong, as seen in the high number of housing starts last month," said Robert Van Order, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "A lot of this has to do with Asia's troubles. While the problems in the Asian markets will hurt some areas of our economy, it has helped to keep the housing sector alive. And although housing will slow down in the near future, there is every reason to believe it will remain in good health." A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 7.46% and 6.99%, respectively, and the average one-year ARM rate was 5.56%. Freddie Mac's website address is http://www.freddiemac.com.