Rate on 30-year mortgage falls to record 3.87 pct.

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WASHINGTON (AP) -- The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage fell this week to a record low, the ninth time that has happened in the last year. Even with the cheapest rates in history, the housing market remains depressed.
# i% J  L( y4 dMortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the rate on the 30-year loan dropped to 3.87 percent this week. That below the previous record of 3.88 hit two weeks ago.
$ \4 W- b( j( P/ a# c1 B* [The average on the 15-year fixed mortgage fell to 3.14 percent, also a record low. Records for mortgage rates date back to the 1950s. ) }7 t# E. Y; C% e: A( @' A! o4 y
Mortgage rates tend to track the yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which fell below 1.9 percent this week.
. H( Z1 ~+ f1 M' x7 u8 ^6 P# CRates have been low for more than a year, and the average rate on the 30-year loan has hovered near 4 percent for more than three months. Yet few people can afford to buy a home or qualify for a loan. Those who can have already done so. / v1 w2 t% _& I0 g0 X( M
High unemployment and scant wage gains have made it harder for many people to qualify for loans. Many don't want to sink money into a home that they fear could lose value over the next few years.
4 z% Q2 X0 m  lSales of previously occupied homes were dismal last year. New-home sales in 2011 were the worst on records going back half a century.
* C: M' A) F) ~+ @. B. H# YBuilders are hopeful that the low rates could boost sales next year. But so far, they have had a minimal impact. * N  j8 I  t" i) o$ s5 t7 N
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Mortgage applications have risen slightly over the past four weeks, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. But they are coming off extremely low levels.
3 k& ~  ]6 @6 `6 FTo calculate the average rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country Monday through Wednesday of each week. 2 C- K, q5 y  U' l, R' D
The average rates don't include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount. 6 N0 X0 Q: e, o! A) h3 N+ n, I
The average fee for the 30-year loan rose to 0.8 from 0.7; the average on the 15-year fixed mortgage was unchanged at 0.8.
# A% P- f+ _7 V* CFor the five-year adjustable loan, the average rate fell to 2.80 percent from 2.85 percent. The average on the one-year adjustable loan rose to 2.76 percent from 2.74 percent.
$ n- o; ~  Q1 T1 K: ^- LThe average fee on the five-year adjustable loan rose was unchanged at 0.7; the average on the one-year adjustable-rate loan was unchanged at 0.6.