WASHINGTON – Mortgage rates dropped to the lowest level on record for the fifth time in six weeks, with the benchmark 30-year rate declining to just 4.54% this week, according to Freddie Mac.
The average rate on the 15-year fixed loan dropped from 4.03% last week to 4%, the lowest on record.
The last time rates were lower was during the 1950s, when most mortgages lasted just 20 or 25 years.
ARM rates also continued to fall, with the average for the five-year ARM dipping to 3.76%, from 3.79% last week; and the average for the one-year ARM slipping to 3.64%, from 3.70%.
“For the sixth week in a row, interest rates on fixed-rate mortgages eased to all-time record lows during a week of mixed housing data reports," said Frank Nothaft, chief economist for Freddie Mac.
Nothaft noted that the number of markets experiencing increases in home prices appears to be growing, citing recent data from the S&P/Case-Shiller Indexes. But he also highlighted last month's decline in existing-home sales.
