Bankrate: Mortgage Rates Fall for the First Time in 3 Weeks

NEW YORK, Apr. 10, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Mortgage rates erased the increases seen over the past two weeks, with the benchmark 30-year fixed mortgage rate retreating to 4.47 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.33 discount and origination points.

To see mortgage rates in your area, go to http://www.bankrate.com/funnel/mortgages/.

The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 3.52 percent, while the larger jumbo 30-year fixed mortgage rate dropped to 4.48 percent. Adjustable rate mortgages posted mixed results, with the 3-year ARM rising to 3.33 percent; the 5-year holding at 3.34 percent; and the 7-year and 10-year falling to 3.58 percent and 3.90 percent, respectively.

Any time there is stock market volatility and investors get nervous, that tends to be good news for mortgage rates. As investors gravitate to bonds of various types, including those backed by mortgages, it helps bring the rates that are quoted to mortgage borrowers lower. Mortgage rates are closely related to yields on long-term government bonds.

On May 1, 2013, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 3.52 percent. At that time, a $200,000 loan would have carried a monthly payment of $900.32. Less than a year later, with the average rate at 4.47 percent, the monthly payment for the same size loan would be $1,009.81, a difference of $109 per month for anyone that waited.

SURVEY RESULTS

30-year fixed: 4.47% -- down from 4.54% last week (avg. points: 0.33)

15-year fixed: 3.52% -- down from 3.58% last week (avg. points: 0.21)

5/1 ARM: 3.34% -- unchanged from last week (avg. points: 0.21)

Bankrate's national weekly mortgage survey is conducted each Wednesday from data provided by the top 10 banks and thrifts in the top 10 markets.

For a full analysis of this week's move in mortgage rates, go to http://www.bankrate.com/mortgagerates.

The survey is complemented by Bankrate's weekly Rate Trend Index, in which a panel of mortgage experts predicts which way the rates are headed over the next seven days. The panelists are divided, with 38 percent expecting mortgage rates to remain more or less unchanged in the coming week, and an equal 38 percent predicting rates to fall further. The remaining 24 percent forecast an increase in mortgage rates in the next week.

For the full mortgage Rate Trend Index, go to http://www.bankrate.com/news/rate-trends/mortgage.aspx.

To download the Bankrate Mortgage Calculator & Mortgage Rates iPhone App 2.0 go to
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/bankrate-mortgage-calculator/id551454062?mt=8.

About Bankrate, Inc.

Bankrate RATE is a leading publisher, aggregator, and distributor of personal finance content on the Internet. Bankrate provides consumers with proprietary, fully researched, comprehensive, independent and objective personal finance editorial content across multiple vertical categories including mortgages, deposits, insurance, credit cards, and other categories, such as retirement, automobile loans, and taxes. The Bankrate network includes Bankrate.com, our flagship website, and other owned and operated personal finance websites, including CreditCards.com, Interest.com, Bankaholic.com, Mortgage-calc.com, CreditCardGuide.com, InsuranceQuotes.com, CarInsuranceQuotes.com, InsureMe.com, and NetQuote.com. Bankrate aggregates rate information from over 4,800 institutions on more than 300 financial products. With coverage of nearly 600 local markets in all 50 U.S. states, Bankrate generates over 172,000 distinct rate tables capturing on average over three million pieces of information daily. Bankrate develops and provides web services to over 80 co-branded websites with online partners, including some of the most trusted and frequently visited personal finance sites on the Internet such as Yahoo!, CNN Money, CNBC, and Comcast. In addition, Bankrate licenses editorial content to over 500 newspapers on a daily basis including The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, and The Boston Globe.

For more information contact:
Kayleen Yates
Senior Director, Corporate Communications
kyates@bankrate.com 
(917) 368-8677    

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SOURCE Bankrate, Inc.