Mortgage rates finished out 2015 breaking above the 4 percent mark. It was the first time in five months the rate edged above 4 percent.
“In the final week of 2015, Treasury yields jumped reacting in part to strong consumer confidence in December,” says Sean Becketti, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “In response, the 30-year mortgage rate rose 5 basis points to 4.01 percent, ending a five-month span below 4 percent. After averaging 3.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2015, we expect the 30-year mortgage rate to average 4.7 percent for the fourth quarter of 2016.”
Freddie Mac reported the following national averages with mortgage rates for the week ending Dec. 31, 2015:
- 30-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 4.01 percent, with an average 0.6 point, rising from the previous week’s 3.96 percent average. A year ago, 30-year rates averaged 3.87 percent.
- 15-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 3.24 percent, with an average 0.6 point, increasing from 3.22 percent the previous week. A year ago at this time, 15-year rates averaged 3.15 percent.
- 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages: averaged 3.08 percent, with an average 0.4 point, up from 3.06 percent the previous week. Last year at this time, 5-year ARMs averaged 3.01 percent.
- 1-year ARMs: averaged 2.68 percent, with an average 0.2 point, holding the same as last week. A year ago, 1-year ARMs averaged 2.40 percent.
Source: Freddie Mac
