For the fifth consecutive week, the average rate for 30-year, fixed rate mortgages dropped, according to a Freddie Mac survey.
For the week ending April 20, 2017, the average rate for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages was 3.97 percent with an average 0.5 point. The average rate was 4.08 percent a week ago and 3.59 percent one year ago.
“The 30-year mortgage rate fell 1.1 basis points this week to 3.97 percent, dropping below the psychologically-important 4 percent level for the first time since November,” Freddie Mac Chief Economist Sean Becketti said in a press release.
“Weak economic data and growing international tensions are driving investors out of riskier sectors and into Treasury securities. This shift in investment sentiment has propelled rates lower,” he added.
Average rates for 15-year, fixed-rate mortgages dropped to 3.23 percent with an average 0.5 point. Fifteen-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 3.34 percent last week and 2.85 percent one year ago.