Mortgage Rates

Freddie Mac reported, on Thursday, that the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 3.73% down. The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage average 3.16% down nearly .09% from previous years.  The fixed-rate mortgages are tracked by the 10-year U.S. Treasury note, which itself is down 0.36%.

The drop-in rates and the treasury note are primarily due to the increased investment in more secure investments by investors that are fearing the increasing tensions between China and America. The rising trade war is not the only worrying situation in the world with other geopolitical conflicts on the horizon. Many American investors are looking inward instead of foreign markets.  

When international politics make the economic waters rocky, many investors choose to invest in bonds. Bonds historically are one of the safest forms of investment and are

Last week the 30-year-fixed-rate mortgage fell below 4%, displaying a 16 month low for the product.  Furthermore, the 15-year-fixed-rate mortgage also registered a fall as it averaged 3.46%  from the previous 3.51%.

Interest rates have been following the general market cues similar to the bond market. Important factors influencing the slowdown are general slowing trends globally and speculations regarding the US-China trade war. With dilapidated global growth predictions for the future, investors are finding fixed income assets like bonds more secure. Mortgage interest rates are linked to the ten year US Treasury note.

However contrary to the drop, Americans are not taking much advantage of this downfall. This is evident by the decrease in the number of applications for both mortgages and refinances. The Mortgage Bankers Association released this data