Mortgages
Rates on 30-year mortgages rose to the highest level in seven weeks, breaking above the 6 percent level. Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.04 percent this week, up from 5.72 percent the previous week.
That is the highest level since the start of the year.
However, one-year adjustable-rate mortgages are still about one-half percentage point lower than at the start of the year, reflecting the aggressive rate cuts engineered by the Federal Reserve in January in an effort to combat the economic slowdown.
Rates on 15-year mortgages, edged up to 5.64 percent, compared to 5.25 percent the prior week. Rates on five-year adjustable-rate mortgages rose to 5.37 percent.
Bucking the upward trend, rates on one-year ARMs dipped slightly to 4.98 percent, down from 5.03 percent.
A sustained rebound in home sales is not expected to occur until around the middle of the year after the number of homes for sale is reduced to more manageable levels.
Seminars
Danny Forbes, a mortgage banker with Golf Savings Bank, is hosting a free seminar for first-time homebuyers from 1 to 6 p.m. today at the Shoreline Public Library, 345 NE 175th St. in Shoreline. Call 425-673-8231 for information or to make reservations.
Send news to Mike Benbow, Business editor, The Herald, P.O. Box 930, Everett, WA 98206, by fax at 425-339-3435 or by e-mail at economy@heraldnet.com.
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