Mortgage Rates Edge Further Below 5% The Wall Street Journal 01-29-2010

Mortgage Rates Edge Further Below 5%
The Wall Street Journal
January 29, 2010

Mortgage rates fell slightly this week, with the average rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages inching further below 5%, according to Freddie Mac's weekly survey.

Rates edged lower as the market awaited the outcome of the Federal Reserve's policy-setting committee meeting Wednesday, according to Frank Northaft, Freddie's chief economist. The Fed voted to keep interest rates near zero.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.98% for the week ended Thursday, down slightly from last week's 4.99% average and 5.1% a year ago. Rates on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages were 4.39%, down from 4.4% last week and 4.8% a year earlier. Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 4.25%, down from last week's 4.27% and 5.27% a year earlier. One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs were 4.29%, down from 4.32% last week and 4.9% a year earlier.