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

super

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. $ L8 N6 i- }5 F( M6 c8 E# B
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.
/ E. l0 m1 g) @# pThe 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. 0 z5 [" F1 W: e5 q- t. C/ d& l
Mortgage rates tend to track the yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which fell below 1.9 percent this week.
. t) h/ l: b9 y! Z. X- ?. eRates 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. ) U7 O& V" g# G8 i  U& n1 y7 n
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.
! r% O) _* @5 s) e& v  N5 BSales of previously occupied homes were dismal last year. New-home sales in 2011 were the worst on records going back half a century.
$ ^( @3 U8 M8 c5 C: RBuilders are hopeful that the low rates could boost sales next year. But so far, they have had a minimal impact. 1 U! H: i% x# K) c& V7 R# C
. J- q2 F4 k& P: m, E
Mortgage applications have risen slightly over the past four weeks, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. But they are coming off extremely low levels. / _9 H6 H2 K3 @: N
To calculate the average rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country Monday through Wednesday of each week.
( v0 Y1 [6 ~+ h: ]; L5 DThe 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. 2 @- @+ y& t! G& \7 U% e, E
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.
) [* N  u( k8 y9 D; J+ f% l/ B6 S) @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. # a# Q, I1 T( C% L' Q0 Y3 I- F
The 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.