Rates on 30 year fixed mortgages fell to the lowest rate this year at $4.72%.
The average rate on a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage hit 4.17 %, the lowest on records dating back to August 1991.
This news has not stimulated the mortgage application rate. According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, the rate was down 35% from last month.
Mortgage rates are closely tied to the unemployment picture and the turbulent stock market. Capital shifted into US Bonds lowers Treasury debt which tends to result in lower mortgage rates.
The rates do not include add-on fees known as points. One point is equal to 1 percent of the total loan amount.
The nationwide fee for loans in Freddie Mac’s survey averaged 0.7 a point for 30-year, 15-year and 5-year loans. The average fee for 1-year loans was 0.6 of a point.
It would be expected that an extension of the homebuyers tax credit would stimulate the market. Rates were expected to rise after the program ended this spring, but have fallen instead over the past two months.