US mortgage rates climb in week

The Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. said long-term lending rates rose in the week ending Thursday. Rates for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages rose from 4.1 percent to 4.16 percent with 0.8 point in the past week. A year ago, rates for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 3.4 percent. Rates for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages rose from 3.2 percent to 3.27 percent with an average 0.7 point in the week. A year ago in the same week, 15-year fixed-rate loans averaged 2.69 percent. Rates for 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 2.96 percent this week with an average 0.5 point. Rates were unchanged from the previous week. A year ago, they averaged 2.73 percent. Rates for 1-year Treasury-indexed adjustable-rate loans averaged 2.61 percent in the week, down from 2.64 percent, with an average 0.5 point, up from 2.6 in the previous week, Freddie Mac said. Last year over the same period, rates for 1-year adjustable-rate loans averaged 2.59 percent. One point is equal to 1 percent of the amount of the loan and is typically paid up front. It includes a corresponding discount on the loan's long-term interest rates. "Fixed mortgage rates rebounded slightly this week on more positive economic data releases. Production in the manufacturing industry expanded for the fifth month in a row in October to the strongest pace since April 2011. Similarly, the non-manufacturing sector grew for the second consecutive month in October and beat the market consensus forecast of a decline," said Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist at Freddie Mac.