Average rates on U.S. 30- and 15-year fixed-rate mortgages rose in the week ending Jan. 7, Freddie Mac said Thursday, fueled by fears that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates at its February meeting.
Thirty-year mortgage rates rose to an average 8.15 percent from 8.06 percent the prior week, the highest since a matching 8.15 percent in the Aug. 13 week.
Fifteen-year mortgages also rose in the week, to an average 7.73 percent from 7.66 percent the prior week, the highest since 7.81 percent in the week ended Sept. 13, 1996.
One-year adjustable-rate mortgages inched upward in the week, to an average 6.60 percent from 6.56 percent, Freddie Mac said.
A year ago, 30-year mortgage rates averaged 6.79 percent, 15-year mortgages 6.43 percent and the ARM 5.61 percent.
Interest rates have risen almost every week since mid-November. Fears that the Fed will raise interest rates again at its Feb. 1-2 meeting have led to the increases, Freddie Mac said.
Freddie Mac said lenders charged an average 1 percent in fees and points on 30- and 15-year mortgages, both unchanged from last week. They also charged 1 percent on the ARM, down from 1.1 percent the prior week.
Elsewhere, in a move designed to boost the number of homeowners around the nation, the government, through the Department of Housing and Urban Development, will begin insuring mortgage loans up to nearly $220,000 in high-cost areas for single-family homes.
