Mortgage rates, where they have been and where they are going
Jake Davis
First we must look at a little history. If you consider the big picture of the last 25 years, things are looking good. The highest average rate of 18.45% in 1981 was enough to make anyone cringe. That was as high as most credit cards' interest rates! In the more recent time span of 1992 to today, the average rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage has stayed within the range of 9.25-5.25%. The lowest rates in recent history were in June of 2003. Since then, rates have followed a zigzag pattern up and down, but generally are trending slightly upwards. But overall, mortgage rates are still near their lowest in recent years.
This year, 30-year mortgage rates started out around 5.7%. After dipping to the yearly low of around 5.2% they have rebounded to the current level of 6%. The question is, will rates hold steady in this range or is this only the start of a longer rise? That is a topic on which whole volumes of books have been written. So now we must make our best estimate based on the current data. If you look at the current Federal Interest rate situation, new housing sales, and resale-housing inventory, most signs point to a rise in mortgage rates in the near term. How high, is speculation for anyone, but a survey of "industry experts" show that most expect to see mortgage rates at 6.75% sometime during 2006.
About the author:
Jake Davis writes about various financial and consumer issues for a variety of online sources including his website http://www.newloanexpert.com
The latest information and news on Mortgages:
Wells Fargo, Baltimore in talks after mortgage suit (Reuters via Yahoo! News)
Wells Fargo & Co said on Friday it is in talks with Baltimore officials that could avert further litigation by that city over the bank's mortgage lending practices.
Mortgage rates remain below 5%, fall to 4.95% (USA Today)
Mortgage rates held below the 5% threshold for the second straight week, a report said Thursday, weeks before a government program that has been keeping rates low is scheduled to expire.
Mortgage lending halves as tax break ends (Daily Telegraph)
Mortgage lending to people buying a home dived by 49% during January following the end of the Government's stamp duty holiday, the latest figures showed.
Average 30-year mortgage rate drops to 4.95%, Freddie Mac says (Los Angeles T...
The average interest rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage dropped to 4.95% this week from 4.97% last week, Freddie Mac said Thursday.
Mortgage lending slumps by half (Daily Telegraph)
Mortgage lending to people buying a home dived by 49pc during January following the end of the Government's stamp duty holiday.
Yahoo! News Search Results for refinance
Refinance may limit financial flexibility (Bankrate.com via Yahoo! Finance)
Reduced financial flexibility may be the price for a home refinance that lowers your mortgage rate.
Pernod Ricard Plans to Issue Bonds to Refinance Absolut Buyout (Bloomberg)
March 10 (Bloomberg) -- Pernod Ricard SA , the world?s second-biggest liquor maker, is planning to sell six-year bonds to help refinance loans used to buy the Absolut vodka brand in March 2008.
RLPC-Mubadala looks to agree $2.5 bln refinancing -bankers (Reuters via Yahoo...
LONDON, March 12 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi government-owned Mubadala Development Company has invited banks to participate in a self-arranged $2.5 billion, three-year club loan to refinance existing debt, banking sources close to the deal said.
(AFX UK Focus) 2010-03-12 13:34 RLPC-Mubadala looks to agree $2.5 bln refinan...
LONDON, March 12 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi government-owned Mubadala Development Company has invited banks to participate in a self-arranged $2.5 billion, three-year club loan to refinance existing debt, banking sources close to the deal said. Pricing on the revolving credit will not be set until the en...
Coal producer ICG prices stock, debt offerings (AP via Yahoo! Finance)
International Coal Group says it's priced stock and note offerings it's using to refinance debt. The Scott Depot-based company says in a regulatory filing Thursday that it's also upped the size of the offerings.