FHFA: mortgage rates rose slightly in November

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) this week reported that the National Average Contract Mortgage Rate for the Purchase of Previously Occupied Homes by Combined Lenders, used as an index in some ARM contracts, was 4.22 percent based on loans closed in November. This is an increase of 0.03 percent from the previous month.

The average interest rate on conventional, 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage loans of $417,000 or less increased 4 basis points to 4.40 percent in November. These rates are calculated from the FHFA’s Monthly Interest Rate Survey of purchase-money mortgages (see technical note). These results reflect loans closed during the November 23-30 period.

Typically, the interest rate is determined 30 to 45 days before the loan is closed. Thus, the reported rates depict market conditions prevailing in mid- to late-October. The contract rate on the composite of all mortgage loans (fixed- and adjustable-rate) was 4.20 percent in November, up 3 basis points from 4.17 percent in October. The effective interest rate, which reflects the amortization of initial fees and charges, was 4.31 percent in November, up 2 basis points from 4.29 percent in October.

This report contains no data on adjustable-rate mortgages due to insufficient sample size. Initial fees and charges were 0.78 percent of the loan balance in November, down 0.05 percent from 0.83 in October. Thirty-four percent of the purchase-money mortgage loans originated in November were "no-point" mortgages, up six percent from the share in October. The average term was 28.5 years in November, down 0.2 years from 28.7 years in October. The average loan-to-price ratio in November was 77.1 percent, down 1.3 percent from 78.4 percent in October. The average loan amount was $220,500 in November, up $2,000 from $218,500 in October.