US 30-, 15-year mortgage rates down slightly in week

Average interest rates on U.S. 30- and 15-year fixed rate mortgages receded slightly in the latest week, according to a weekly survey issued by mortgage finance company Freddie Mac on Thursday.

Rates on 30-year mortgages inched downward to an average of 6.30 percent from 6.32 percent the previous week, while rates on 15-year mortgages averaged 5.85 percent, down from 5.87 percent, Freddie Mac said.

One-year adjustable rate mortgages also took a small dip, to an average of 5.15 percent from 5.16 percent a week ago.

A year ago, rates averaged 5.68 percent on 30-year mortgages, 5.11 percent on 15-year mortgages and 4.18 percent on the one-year ARM.

"Earlier in the week, interest rates were a bit higher, as financial markets were a little anxious about what language the Federal Reserve would use in its statement this month," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist, in a statement.

"When the Fed signaled that its interest rate tightening may be coming to an end soon, the financial market breathed a sigh of relief, and rates eased somewhat," he said.

The Federal Reserve's decision-making Federal Open Market Committee raised the federal funds rate by a quarter of a percentage point on Dec. 13. In its statement, however, the Fed indicated that it might be nearing the end of its credit-tightening campaign.

Lenders charged an average of 0.5 percent in fees and points on 30- and 15-year mortgages, both down from 0.6 percent last week. They charged 0.6 percent on the one-year ARM, down from 0.8 percent last week.

The hybrid "5/1" ARM, set at a fixed rate for five years and then adjustable each year following, averaged 5.77 percent, down slightly from 5.78 percent a week ago, Freddie Mac said.

Freddie Mac is a mortgage finance company chartered by Congress that buys mortgages from lenders and packages them into securities to sell to investors or to hold in its own portfolio.

What are people saying about mortgages today:

Rates on 30-year mortgages edged down last week to a seven-month low. Mortgage-giant Freddie Mac reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages fell to 6.3 percent, down slightly from 6.31 percent two weeks ago. It put rates at the lowest level since they were at 6.24 percent the first week of March.

Bank of Hawaii, Central Pacific Bank, Territorial Savings Bank and Wells Fargo Home Mortgages all cut their 30-year mortgage rates to 5.75 percent this week.

Most people think of a mortgage as a means to an end. After all, you buy a house, not a home loan. But a mortgage is much more than the path to homeownership. It is a financial instrument that must be managed, just like any other financial investment.