Rates on the most popular types of mortgages barely moved for a ninth straight week, according to HSH.com's Weekly Mortgage Rates Radar. The average rate for conforming 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell by one basis point (0.01 percent) to 3.53 percent. Conforming 5/1 Hybrid ARM rates also decreased by one basis point, closing the Wednesday-to-Tuesday wraparound weekly survey at an average of 2.92 percent.
Ambiguous August report
"The key August employment report was ambiguous," said Keith Gumbinger, vice president of HSH.com. "With 151,000 new hires, it was strong enough to suggest the economy remains on solid ground, but not so strong as to suggest that the Federal Reserve needs to lift short-term interest rates later this month, so mortgage and other interest rates continue to play a wait-and-see game."
Corroborating information about the health of the economy has pointed to a bit of a softening in August, in an otherwise fairly healthy period. Measures of activity at manufacturing and service-oriented businesses from the Institute for Supply Management both showed some deceleration during the month, likely further diminishing the chances of a near-term move by the Fed. Prospects for a rate hike later in the year remain on track, but there is quite a bit of time and data to be seen before then.
Chance of a small move in rates this month
"Could the Fed make a move, even though there isn't great data to support it? Certainly," adds Gumbinger. "When they raised rates in December, financial markets were calm, as they are now. Economic growth was cooling to a level not even as strong as we see today, and inflation was running at about the same pace, so there remains at least some possibility that the Fed could decide to make another small move in rates this month. The consequences -- effects on mortgage and other interest rates -- of doing so would likely be minor, anyway."
Current mortgage rates
Average mortgage rates and points for conforming residential mortgages for the week ending September 6, according to HSH.com:
Conforming 30-year fixed-rate mortgage
- Average rate: 3.53 percent
- Average points: 0.18
Conforming 5/1-year adjustable-rate mortgage
- Average rate: 2.92 percent
- Average points: 0.14
Average mortgage rates and points for conforming residential mortgages for the previous week ending August 30 were, according to HSH.com:
Conforming 30-year fixed-rate mortgage
- Average rate: 3.54 percent
- Average points: 0.17
Conforming 5/1-year adjustable-rate mortgage
- Average rate: 2.93 percent
- Average points: 0.12
Methodology
The Weekly Mortgage Rates Radar reports the average rates and points offered on conforming 30-year fixed-rate mortgages and conforming 5/1 ARMs. The weekly mortgage rate survey covers a large sample of mortgage lenders and is conducted over a Wednesday-to-Tuesday cycle, with data released every Wednesday. HSH.com’s survey helps consumers find the best rates on home loans in changing market conditions. Unlike mortgage rate surveys that report average rates only, the Weekly Mortgage Rates Radar’s inclusion of both average rates and average points provides a more accurate view of mortgage terms currently offered by lenders.
