The average rate on the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased to 3.91% in the week ended January 5, which matches a record low, compared with 3.95% in the prior week, according to Freddie Mac.
The rate was at 4.77% a year ago.
In order to obtain the latest rate, payment of an average 0.8 point was required, according to Freddie Mac.
1% of the mortgage amount is a point, charged in prepaid interest.
"Fixed mortgage rates started the year a little lower this week just as recent data reports indicate the housing market and manufacturing industry are showing signs of improvement," stated Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac’s chief economist.
The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage slipped to 3.23% in the latest week from 3.24% in the prior week.
The average rate on the 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage dropped to 2.86% from 2.88%.
The 1-year Treasury-indexed ARM jumped to 2.80% from 2.78%.
Source: marketwatch.com