Interest Rates Are Bi-Polar

Mortgage rates reversed course this week, rising slightly over the past week and reaching their highest level since late June, Freddie Mac reports.

“The next few months will be key for gauging the health of the housing market,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “Existing sales appear to have peaked, sales of newly built homes are slowing, and unsold inventory is rising for the first time in three years.”

Affordability pressures are mounting in many markets, with the combination of continuous price gains and higher mortgage rates, Khater says. These factors “appear to be giving more prospective buyers a pause,” he says. “This is why new and existing-home sales are not breaking out this summer despite the healthy economy and labor market.”

Freddie Mac reports the following national averages with mortgage rates for the week ending July 26:

30-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 4.54 percent, with an average 0.5 point, rising from last week’s 4.52 percent average. Last year at this time, 30-year rates averaged 3.92 percent.
15-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 4.02 percent, with an average 0.4 point, increasing from last week’s 4 percent average. A year ago, 15-year rates averaged 3.20 percent.
5-year hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages: averaged 3.87 percent, with an average 0.4 point, and were unchanged from last week. A year ago, 5-year ARMs averaged 3.18 percent.

Source: Freddie Mac

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