Mortgage Rates Follow Bond Yields Higher

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^{Published in Business and Finance on Thursday, March 15th 2012 at 7:05 GMT by Market Wire}  

Mortgage Rates Follow Bond Yields Higher -- MCLEAN, Va., March 15, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

MCLEAN, Va., March 15, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- [ Freddie Mac ] (OTC: FMCC) today released the results of its [ Primary Mortgage Market Survey® ] (PMMS®), showing mortgage rates moving higher amid positive jobs data and increasing bond yields. Despite the increase, the average 30-year fixed rate mortgage has been below 4.00 percent for 15 consecutive weeks helping to keep homebuyer affordability high.

News Facts

• [ 30-year fixed-rate mortgage ] (FRM) averaged 3.92 percent with an average 0.8 point for the week ending March 15, 2012, up from last week when it averaged 3.88 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.76 percent. 
• [ 15-year FRM ] this week averaged 3.16 percent with an average 0.8 point, up from last week when it averaged 3.13 percent.A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 3.97 percent. 
• [ 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage ] (ARM) averaged 2.83 percent this week, with an average 0.8 point, up from last week when it averaged 2.81 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 3.57 percent.
• [ 1-year Treasury-indexed ARM ] averaged 2.79 percent this week with an average 0.6 point, up from last week when it averaged 2.73 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 3.17 percent.  

Average commitment rates should be reported along with average fees and points to reflect the total upfront cost of obtaining the mortgage. Visit the following links for [ Regional and National Mortgage Rate Details ] and [ Definitions ]. Borrowers may still pay closing costs which are not included in the survey.

Quotes
Attributed to Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist, Freddie Mac.

• "An upbeat employment report for February caused U.S. Treasury bond yields to increase over the week and mortgage rates followed. The [ economy gained ] 227,000 jobs, above the market consensus forecast, and revisions added another 61,000 to January and December.  Job growth over the last six months was the strongest since 2006. In addition, the Federal Reserve's March 13th policy committee [ announcement ] noted that it anticipates the unemployment rate will decline gradually toward levels that it judges to be consistent with its mandate to achieve maximum employment with stable prices and moderate long-term interest rates."

Get the latest information from Freddie Mac's Office of the Chief Economist on Twitter:[ @FreddieMac ]

Freddie Mac was established by Congress in 1970 to provide liquidity, stability and affordability to the nation's residential mortgage markets. Freddie Mac supports communities across the nation by providing mortgage capital to lenders. Over the years, Freddie Mac has made home possible for one in six homebuyers and more than five million renters.

SOURCE Freddie Mac

RELATED LINKS
[ http://www.freddiemac.com ]