Current mortgage rates have seen an increasingly widened gap between long-term fixed rates and adjustable rates recently, according to Freddie Mac and CNNmoney.com. Nearly back to where they were at the beginning of the year, 30 year long-term fixed rate mortgages were averaging up to 6.04% this week, up from 5.72% last week. 
15 year long-term fixed rate mortgages were also up this week, averaging 5.62%. 
On the other hand, (and somewhat surprising) Adjustable Rate mortgages were down this week. Five-year Adjustable Rate mortgages averaged 5.37% this week, down from 5.97% last year. 
One-year Treasury indexed ARMs were only slightly down this week, averaging 4.98% as compared to last week's 5% rate. With the Subprime Crisis receiving worldwide attention, lower rates on adjustable rate mortgages comes as a surprise to some. However, the continuing rush to refinance at lower rates may be pushing long-term fixed rates to higher, more competitive rates. According to Frank Nothaft, economist with Freddie Mac, "As the spread between long-term fixed-rates and adjustable-rates widens, it's possible we could see a slight increase in the popularity of adjustable-rate mortgages." |
