Mortgage Rates Continue To Bounce Around Gently

Mortgage rates barely budged during the week ended July 6 and July 7. While the average contract rate of most products moved up, changes were virtually imperceptible, perhaps lending further credence to Freddie Mac's projection in its July Economic Outlook that rates would "continue to bounce around gently."

The average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage was up one basis point to 6.79 with fees and points unchanged for the fifth straight week at 0.5. The 15 year also increased one basis point to 6.44 percent with fees and points unchanged at 0.5. Average rates for the 5/1-year ARM were unchanged at 6.39 percent although fees and points moved from 0.5 to 0.6. The 1-year ARM averaged 5.83 and 0.8 in fees and points. The rate here increased 1 basis point while fees and points were unchanged.

15-year fixed-rate mortgages declined from 6.41 to 6.40 points but points moved upward to 1.17 from 1.12. The one-year ARM decreased two basis points to 6.40 with points going up to 1.17 from 1.12.

All averages are based on 80 percent loan to value originations.

Loan applications were up 1 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis but down 29.1 percent on an unadjusted basis from one week earlier. The decrease might be accounted for by the fact that the Tuesday Fourth of July observance created a virtual four day weekend. Applications continue to be way off of 2005 volumes and were down 36.3 percent from the same week in 2005.

Refinancing decreased 1 percent to 34.0 from a week earlier and the share of adjustable rate mortgages to total applications were off to 28.7 percent from 29.5 the previous week.

Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist, attributed the shallow activity to the fact that the Federal Reserve's rate increase came as no great surprise. "This is fairly consistent with out economic outlook which continues to forecast that interest rates for the 30-year fixed rate mortgage will gradually drift upward."