Mortgage Rates Edge Up as Politics and Economics Muddle Financial Markets

iStock

Rates for home loans ticked up but stayed near 2017 lows, mortgage provider Freddie Mac said Thursday.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.05%, up three basis points during the week. The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.29%, up from 3.27%. The 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage averaged 3.14%, up one basis point.

Those rates don’t include fees associated with obtaining mortgage loans.

The 10-year Treasury yield, which mortgages often track, rose eight basis points during the week as supply swelled and hawkish signals from Federal Reserve officials outweighed a small flight to safety into government bonds away from stocks following the firing of FBI Director James Comey.

That was a eight-week high for the benchmark Treasury note yield.

Mortgage rates surged following the November presidential election, when many investors began to expect stronger economic growth and more inflation from the incoming Trump administration. Many analysts predicted mortgage rates would average about 4.50% throughout 2017. So far, however, they’ve averaged 4.13%.

The post Mortgage Rates Edge Up as Politics and Economics Muddle Financial Markets appeared first on Real Estate News & Advice | realtor.com®.

from DIYS http://ift.tt/2qwKilL