30-year fixed-rate mortgage stays at 4.45%

Freddie Mac: Mortgage rates hold steady for third consecutive week.

 

Mortgage rates held their ground for the third week in a row, according to the latest Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey.

According to the survey, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.45% for the week ending Jan. 24, 2019, remaining unchanged from last week’s percentage. Once again, this is still a significant increase from last year’s rate of 4.15%.

 “Mortgage rates have stabilized during the last month and are essentially at the same level as last spring – yet the most recent home sales are roughly half a million lower over the same period,” Freddie Mac Chief Economist Sam Khater said. “Given that the economyremains on solid footing and weekly mortgage purchase application activity has been strong so far in 2019, we expect the decline in home sales to moderate or even reverse over the next couple of months.”

 The 15-year FRM averaged 3.88% this week, holding steady from last week’s average. Notably, this time last year, the 15-year FRM was 3.62%.