Mortgage Interest Rates Slightly Down, FHFA
The Federal Housing Finance Agency reported mortgage rates slightly decreased.
Average interest rate on conventional 30-year, fixed-rate, mortgage loans of $417,000 or less decreased 4 basis points to 5.05% in December 2009.
Average interest rate on 15-year, fixed-rate loans of $417,000 or less decreased 9 basis points to 4.54% in December 2009.
The contract rate on the composite of all mortgage loans (fixed and adjustable rate) was
4.92% in December, down 8 basis points from 5.00% in November.
The effective interest rate, which reflects the amortization of initial fees and charges, was 5.01% in December, down 8 basis points from 5.09% in November.
Initial fees and charges were 0.62% of the loan balance in December, up 0.01% from 0.61 in November. 45% of the purchase-money mortgage loans originated in December were “no-point” mortgages, up from 44 percent in November.
Average term was 27.4 years in December, down 0.6 years from 28.0 years in
November.
Average loan-to-price ratio in December was 73.9%, unchanged from November.
Average loan amount was $217,800 in December, up $6,600 from $211,200 in November.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency regulates Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the 12 Federal Home Loan Banks. These government-sponsored enterprises provide more than $6.3 trillion in funding for the U.S. mortgage markets and financial institutions.
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