Freddie Mac: Fixed Mortgage Rates Fall After Disappointing Jobs Report

Based on Freddie Mac’s latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS), the average fixed mortgage rate followed Treasury yields lower following a more than disappointing September 2015 jobs report.

The 15-year fixed-rate average dropped to 2.99 percent with an average 0.6 point, moving below 3 percent for the first time since April. 30-year mortgage rates rates have been below 4% for 11 straight weeks. This rate averaged 3.07 percent last year and 3.36 percent a year ago.

WHAT I SEE: From rate sheets hitting my desk that are not part of Freddie Mac’s survey: Locally, well qualified borrowers can get a 15-year fixed at 2.875 percent with no points and a 30-year fixed at 3.625 percent without points. Last year, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.19%. “The sputtering US economy added only 142,000 jobs”, said Sean Becketti, chief economist, Freddie Mac. To make matters worse, there were downward revisions to the prior two months. The five-year ARM average slid to 2.88 percent with an average 0.4 point.

The company says total home equity is at its highest level since 2007, up almost $1 trillion since past year. At this time a year ago, the 1-year ARM averaged 2.42%. The poor report could throw off plans for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates before the end of the year.

And the mortgage loan momentum doesn’t seem to be slowing just yet.

Meanwhile, as rates moved lower, mortgage applications spiked this week, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. Loan applications for the week ending October 2, 2015, rose 25.5% over the previous week; refinance applications saw a similar increase, up 24%.