Interest rates dropped significantly following December’s jobs report, which showed that while wages continue to increase, the number of jobs added still fell below many economists expectations.
“The December jobs report showed 156,000 jobs added, barely meeting many experts’ expectations, while wage growth was at the high end of expectations at 0.4%,” Freddie Mac Chief Economist Sean Becketti said. “If strong wage gains persist, they may push inflation and interest rates higher.”
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(Source: Freddie Mac)
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage slipped down to 4.12% for the week ending Jan. 12, 2017. This is down from last week’s 4.2% but still up from last year’s 3.92%.
The 15-year FRM also decreased to 3.37%, down from last week’s 3.44% but still up from last year’s 3.19%.
The five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage dropped to 3.23%, significantly lower than last week’s 3.33% but still up from 3.01% last year.
“After absorbing a mixed December jobs report, the 10-year Treasury yield fell eight basis points,” Becketti said. “The 30-year mortgage rate moved in tandem with Treasury yields falling eight basis points to 4.12%, the second decline since the presidential election.”
