Mortgage rates move lower

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WASHINGTON, May 24 (UPI) -- Average mortgage rates for long-term, fixed-rate loans keep falling to record lows, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. said Thursday.

Average rates for 30-year contracts dropped from 3.79 percent to 3.78 percent with 0.8 points, a record low. Thirty-year mortgage rates averaged 4.6 percent the same week of 2011.

Average rates on 15-year contracts held at a record low of 3.04 percent with 0.7 points, Freddie Mac said.

A year earlier, rates on 15-year contracts stood at 3.78 percent.

Five-year adjustable rate mortgages averaged 2.83 percent in the week with an average 0.6 points, unchanged in the week and down from an average of 3.41 percent a year earlier.

Average rates on one-year treasury-indexed adjustable mortgages fell from 2.78 percent to 2.75 percent with 0.4 points. A year ago, rates for these loans averaged 3.11 percent.

"Mortgage rates were virtually unchanged this week with fixed-rate loans remaining at record lows and helping to drive homebuyer affordability," commented Freddie Mac Vice President and Chief Economist Frank Nothaft.