The newest mortgage rates released last week are looking very low. Average long term mortgage rates in the United States dropped to their lowest level in over a year. They have not been this low since February 2015. A mortgage rate this low should continue to draw in springtime home buyers.
According to mortgage Freddie Mac on Thursday, the 30-year fixed rate mortgage dropped from 3.71 percent to 3.59 percent. A year ago, the benchmark rate was 3.66 percent.
The average rate on 15-year mortgages also dropped last week. They moved down from 2.98 percent to 2.88 percent.
These drops that show in the newest mortgage rates may come as a surprise to you. When the Federal Reserve raised interest rates in December, most people expected mortgage rates to rise with them. Due to global political and economic factors mortgage rates fell anyway. According to the Associated Press, “A recent speech by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen reaffirmed the Fed’s plans to move slowly in raising the interest rates it controls.”
So will these low mortgage rates last? Could they drop even further and break some records? Matthew Graham, chief operating office of Mortgage News Daily, weighed in on CNBC.com.
“It’s impossible to know how timing will play out, but I definitely see the ingredients in place for new all-time lows sometime soon,” said Graham. “It actually concerns me how convinced I am that this will happen eventually.”
Low oil prices that won’t rise and other economic factors make Graham pretty confident that these mortgage rates will keep dropping.
What do the newest mortgage rates mean for you as a home buyer? The lower the mortgage rate, generally, the more buying power you have. With any questions about what mortgage rates mean to you, contact one of our smart agents today. In the meantime, check out our properties for sale that are ready and waiting for you today!