The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is getting closer to moving over 4 percent, as mortgage rates climb for the second week in a row. Freddie Mac reports that fixed-rate mortgages are rising in anticipation of a possible rate increase by the Federal Reserve and a recent strong jobs report.
“A surprisingly strong October jobs report showed 271,000 jobs added and wage growth of 0.4 percent from last month, exceeding many experts’ expectations,” says Sean Becketti, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “The positive employment reports pushed Treasury yields to about 2.3 percent as investors responded by placing a higher likelihood on a December rate hike. Mortgage rates followed, with the 30-year jumping 11 basis points to 3.98 percent, the highest since July. There is only one more employment report before the December FOMC meeting, which will have major implications on whether we see a rate hike in 2015.”
Freddie Mac reports the following national averages with mortgage rates for the week ending Nov. 12:
- 30-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 3.98 percent, with an average 0.6 point, rising from last week’s 3.87 percent average. Last year at this time, 30-year rates averaged 4.01 percent.
- 15-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 3.20 percent, with an average 0.6 point, increasing from last week’s 3.09 percent average. A year ago, 15-year rates averaged 3.20 percent.
- 5-year hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages: averaged 3.03 percent, with an average 0.4 point, climbing from last week’s 2.96 percent average. A year ago, 5-year ARMs averaged 3.02 percent.
- 1-year ARMs: averaged 2.65 percent, with an average 0.2 point, increasing from 2.62 percent last week. A year ago, 1-year ARMs averaged 2.43 percent.
Source: Freddie Mac
