Mortgage rates have been all the rage this year, largely because they’ve been hitting new record lows time and time again in recent months.
So I decided to take a look at the popular 30-year fixed rate mortgage by charting it since the beginning of 2010.
As you can see, it has fallen nearly a full percentage point since April, sparking refinance demand, but doing little to up purchase activity.
It started the year at 5.09 percent, and dipped slightly in February and March before rising to a high of 5.21 percent in early April.
That was attributed to the job growth seen around that time – remember good economic news pushes mortgage rates higher.
Then the homebuyer tax credit expired, and mortgage rates kept sinking to new record lows as more and more unpleasant news rolled in.
In fact, since the high seen during the week ending April 8, 30-year fixed mortgage rates have only increased four times week-to-week, including twice in the past month.
Have Mortgage Rates Hit Bottom?
Does this mean 30-year fixed mortgage rates have bottomed, or is it just a slight setback before they test new lows?
Well, with little good news on the horizon and home sales largely flat, there’s no reason the 30-year fixed can’t go lower.
The big question is will it make much of a difference?
Remember, a third of borrowers don’t qualify these days because of their low credit scores, and many others can’t refi because of negative equity.
So maybe we do need that blanket refinance after all…
Comments are closed.