Fifteen-year mortgage rates hit new low

Experts have been touting the affordability of the current housing market for weeks, and with another slide in mortgage rates, moving to a new home may have become even more affordable.

Freddie Mac reported record lows for rates on two separate mortgage types this week. The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 4.32 percent from 4.37 percent the previous week. That tied the lowest rate ever recorded by Freddie Mac for a 30-year FRM - a record set just four weeks ago.

Additionally, 15-year fixed-rate mortgages established a new record low, falling to 3.75 percent from 3.82 percent last week. That was also down significantly from the average 15-year rate from a year ago, which was 4.36 percent.

Freddie Mac's chief economist, Frank Nothaft, tied the drops in mortgage rates to sinking consumer confidence. On the other hand, families are moving into homes and rebuilding part of the trillions of dollars in equity that was lost between 2006 and 2009. "This, in part, strengthened household balance sheets and reduced serious mortgage delinquencies," he added.

Falling rates may have also encouraged more relocating families to seek a mortgage. The Mortgage Bankers Association reported that for the week ending September 24, the volume of purchase applications increased 2.4 percent from the previous week.
 

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