Mortgage Rates Fall and Applications Rise

The Mortgage Bankers Associations (MBA) said today that its Mortgage Applications Survey increased 48 percent the week ending December 19th and the Refinance Index surged 62 percent. The surge in activity is being driven by record low mortgage rates.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 5.04 percent from 5.18 percent, with points increasing to 1.17 from 1.13 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value (LTV) ratio loans. The contract rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages is the lowest recorded in the survey since the record low of 4.99 percent for the week ending June 13, 2003.

The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 4.91 percent from 4.93 percent, with points decreasing to 1.03 from 1.34 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans.

The average contract interest rate for one-year ARMs decreased to 6.36 percent from 6.63 percent, with points decreasing to 0.28 from 0.30 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans.

If you are in a position to purchase a home or refinance an existing loan now is a good time to do so. The general rule when refinancing is if you can get a mortgage rate 1.0% lower then your existing mortgage it pays to refinance, that is if you plan to be in the home for awhile.