Mortgage rates dip after bill’s passage
30-year loan rates average 6.52 percent
WASHINGTON – Rates on 30-year mortgages, which shot up last week to the highest level in nearly a year, dropped slightly this week following passage of a housing rescue bill.
Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the nationwide average for 30-year mortgages dipped to 6.52 percent this week, down from 6.63 percent last week.
While the new level was still the second highest this year, it was down slightly from last week when investors were concerned about financial troubles at Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, which together hold or guarantee nearly half of the nation’s mortgages.
On Wednesday, President Bush signed into law a sweeping housing rescue plan that won final approval in Congress on Saturday. The measure aims to help up to 400,000 families avoid foreclosure by allowing them to refinance into more affordable mortgages.
It also expands the assistance the federal government can provide Fannie and Freddie as a way of reassuring investors about the financial health of the two mortgage titans.
Rates on other types of mortgages also fell this week, according to the Freddie Mac survey.
Rates on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, a popular option for refinancing, fell to 6.07 percent, down from 6.18 percent last week.
Rates on five-year adjustable-rate mortgages also dropped to 6.07 percent, down from 6.16 percent last week. Rates on one-year adjustable-rate mortgages declined to 5.27 percent, compared to 5.49 percent last week.
The mortgage rates do not include add-on fees known as points. A year ago, rates on 30-year mortgages stood at 6.68 percent.