Mortgage Rates Hold Steady

Nov 15, 2018

The national homeownership rate in the fourth quarter of 2018 was 64.8 percent, according to the latest U.S. Census Housing Vacancies and Homeownership report

Mortgage rates were mostly in a holding pattern in Freddie Mac’s latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS).

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.94 percent for the week ending Nov. 15, unchanged from last week. The 15-year FRM this week averaged 4.36 percent, up from last week when it averaged 4.33 percent. And the five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 4.14 percent, unchanged from last week.

Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist, observed that the “stability in mortgage rates reflects the moderation in inflationary pressures in the economy due to lower oil prices and subdued wage growth. On the margin, lower energy costs are a positive for the home sales market, particularly for lower-middle income suburban buyers who spend proportionately more income on transportation costs.”

Mortgage rates were mostly in a holding pattern in Freddie Mac’s latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS)

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Phil Hall

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Nov 15, 2018

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