Mortgage rates rose again last week as Treasury yields continued to climb, with the average rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages moving further above 5%, according to Freddie Mac's weekly survey of mortgage rates.
Freddie's chief economist, Frank Nothaft, said last week that although long-term interest rates grew for the fourth straight week, they "still remain affordable by historical standards."
The latest figures came as the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index of home prices last week showed a fifth straight month of gains in October. Nothaft said the data shows that the housing market "is slowly improving."
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 5.14% for the week ended Dec. 31, up from the prior week's 5.05% and 5.10% a year earlier. Rates on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages were 4.54%, up from 4.45% the prior week, but down from 4.83% a year earlier.
Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 4.44%, up from 4.4% a week earlier, but down from 5.57% a year earlier.
