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. # r0 k) [$ ]) l, r, N5 j
Mortgage 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 d! O8 }- t% |* I' E9 N! M
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.
# q" r; G, l0 NMortgage rates tend to track the yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which fell below 1.9 percent this week. 0 y3 s$ V; O# f, z+ W0 N+ Y3 _+ a
Rates 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.
: |3 s& f1 l" P* K3 x4 uHigh 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.
$ N: M2 X( q2 U- a" vSales of previously occupied homes were dismal last year. New-home sales in 2011 were the worst on records going back half a century.
1 }0 c# J+ v! n5 w* EBuilders are hopeful that the low rates could boost sales next year. But so far, they have had a minimal impact. 7 `% V- B* l7 k7 d1 R$ F8 K9 q( o

2 U- i4 P4 L) S  B: GMortgage applications have risen slightly over the past four weeks, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. But they are coming off extremely low levels. 6 [& C: g% j& @7 Q6 Z6 G
To calculate the average rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country Monday through Wednesday of each week.
: T4 F. Z6 M: `4 m3 PThe 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. : `1 i5 v& v) @5 I! T' x
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. & M+ u5 y# n1 N0 W1 c1 v% L- O% s9 o
For 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.
# v% {/ @; y( v& uThe 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.