WSJ by DREW FITZGERALD
Mortgage rates ticked up again in the latest week as inflation concerns eased somewhat, according to Freddie Mac’s weekly survey of mortgage rates.
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.86% in the week ended Thursday, up from 4.81% the previous week but down from 5.08% a year earlier.
Mortgage rates generally track U.S. bond yields, which move inversely to prices. Rates have climbed recently, in March hitting the highest point since last April after slumping most of last year when Treasurys rallied amid economic uncertainty.
Freddie Chief Economist Frank Nothaft said low rates “have benefited from relatively benign inflation reports” of late, while distressed property sales continue to pressure house prices.
Rates on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages were 4.09%, up from 4.04% in the previous week but down from 4.39% a year earlier.
Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 3.70%, up from the prior week’s 3.62% but down from 4.10% a year earlier. One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs were 3.26%, up from 3.21% but down from 4.05%, respectively.
To obtain the rates, the mortgages required an average payment of 0.7 point, except for the 1-year Treasury-indexed ARMs, which averaged 0.6 point. A point is 1% of the mortgage amount, charged as prepaid interest.
