Mortgage rates and applications stable this week
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) says that for the past two weeks (January 17 to January 28, 2011) mortgage applications have been relatively flat for a home purchase and declined by five percent for refinance applications.
The MBA Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending January 28, 2011, showed an increase in mortgage applications of 11.3 percent, mostly because of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day holiday had slowed applications the previous week.
Mortgage rates stayed almost exactly the same during these two weeks, with HSH.com reporting the average rate on a 30 year fixed-rate loan of 5.12 percent with 0.29 points for the week ending January 28.
Some homeowners may be opting to wait to apply for a mortgage refinance, but economists predict an eventual increase in home loan interest rates in the coming months and in 2012. Financial experts suggest that locking in a 30-year mortgage loan at approximately five percent could be one of the safest financial moves a homeowner can make.
