This week saw conflicting reports of interest rate movements, despite markets having little news with which to react.
[IMAGE]""""Freddie Mac's"""":http://www.freddiemac.com/ Primary Mortgage Market Survey showed little movement among fixed rates for the week ending January 9, with the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaging 4.51 percent (0.7 point), down from 4.53 percent. A year ago, the 30-year FRM was recorded at 3.40 percent.
The 15-year FRM this week averaged 3.56 percent (0.6 point), up from 3.55 percent.
The 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 3.15 percent (0.4 point) this [COLUMN_BREAK]
week, according to Freddie Mac--that's up a tenth of a percentage point from last week. The 1-year ARM was unchanged at 2.56 percent (0.5 point).
""""Mortgage rates were little changed amid a week of light economic reports,"""" said Frank Nothaft, VP and chief economist at Freddie Mac. """"Of the few releases, the private sector added an estimated 238,000 jobs in December, which exceeded the market consensus and followed an upward revision of 14,000 jobs in November, according to the ADP Research Institute.
""""Also, the Institute for Supply Management reported a greater slowing in growth in the non-manufacturing industry in December than the market consensus forecast,"""" he added.
On the other hand, """"Bankrate.com's"""":http://www.bankrate.com/ weekly national survey found more pronounced declines all around: According to the finance site, the 30-year fixed was down to 4.64 percent this week (from 4.69 percent), while the 15-year fixed was down to 3.69 percent (from 3.73 percent).
The 5/1 ARM fell to 3.46 percent, down from 3.52 percent, Bankrate reported.
""""Mortgage rates started out 2014 by pulling back, helped by a few down sessions in the stock market,"""" the company said in a release. """"This week's decline largely unwinds the increase in mortgage rates seen in the last week of 2013.""""