Interest Rates Spike but Just Barely

Interest rates up for the 1st time in three weeks but remain firmly below 5%.

Interest rates made little movement from last week at this time and remain a full 12 basis points below 5%. As of this morning the average overnight rate, as reported by Bankrate.com, for a 30 year fixed rate sits at 4.88% up a single basis point from the 4.87% we were at last Sunday. Remember this is the average overnight rate and those with good credit will still be able to lock in rates below these averages. Last week we changed our chart to track interest rate changes going back only 6 months so we hope you enjoy the new look and if anyone would like me to send them longer term data just let me know.

The benchmark 15 year fixed rate bucked the trend and decreased slightly last week to 4.15% from 4.16% while the benchmark 5/1 adjustable rate mortgage made a more significant move to the upside to 3.62% from 3.56% the previous week. 

While last week’s moves were minor signs point to the overall economic recovery in the United States where signs point to a slowdown. This week the continued unrest in Libya may trigger additional increases in oil costs which could point to a drop in interest rates. Interest rates are critical to the housing market so we will continue to keep a close eye on the cost of money. All signs point to rates staying in the 5%+/- area for the immediate future but bear watching as we have seen over the past 3 months just how quickly things can change. In an upcoming update we will dig into the increased costs on FHA loans coming next month to borrowers everywhere.

We take great pride here at “Results Driven Real Estate” in providing our clients the very highest level of service available in the industry. If we can be of assistance in any way with questions you may have about your real estate goals please feel free to contact me at your convenience for a complimentary consultation.

Always at Your Service,

Tom Priester   e-PRO

"Results Driven Real Estate"

Keller Williams Realty

561 308-0175

tom@tompriester.com