Long-term mortgage rates continued to move lower this week, with a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage falling to a record low for the second consecutive week.
The weekly rate report from Freddie Mac says 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 3.35 percent in the week ending May 2, down from 3.4 percent last week. The average rate on a 30-year fixed rate loan is just above its all-time low of 3.31 percent set in November.
A 15-year fixed rate loan fell to an average of 2.56 percent, on par with average rates for both one-year and five-year adjustable-rate mortgages.
Both investors and existing homeowners are taking advantage of these low rates.
The Mortgage Bankers Association says applications for mortgages rose for the fourth straight week last week.
Sales of existing homes in the first quarter reached the highest level since the end of 2009, and new-home sales in the first quarter were the highest since the summer of 2008.
Investors should take advantage of these historically low interest rates as the borrowed money is virtually free when you factor inflation into the equation. Once interest rates start rising, we may never see low rates like these again.
