Mortgage Rates Fall To Another Record Low

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Nicole Spector

Fri, Nov 20, 2020, 5:03 PM 2 min read

Mortgage rates keep sliding, and now they’re lower than they’ve been in the almost-50-year history of Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey, which was released on Thursday. The survey found that the average on the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell from 2.84% to 2.72%, over the last week, with an average 0.7 point. This time last year, the average rate was 3.66%.

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Additionally, the 15-year fixed-rate average dropped from 2.34% to 2.28%, with an average 0.6 point. This time last year, the 15-year rate was 3.15%. The five-year adjustable-rate average also dropped — from 3.11% to 2.85%. In November 2019, the five-year average was at 3.39%.

Mortgage rates are shaped by a few factors including inflation and actions taken by the Federal Reserve, but sinking mortgage rates are often a clear reflection of a sinking economy. Mortgage rates have been dropping off for a while — hitting record lows 13 times this year, sent plummeting as the demand for home loans grows, putting pressure on lenders.

“Mortgage rates hit another record low because investors are facing increased uncertainty about rising covid-19 cases and the weak economy,” George Ratiu, senior economist for Realtor.com, told The Washington Post in an article published on Thursday. “Just this morning new unemployment claims rose, which means that 742,000 people lost their jobs last week. And the previous week’s claims were revised up to more than 700,000.”

A pickup in the economy — and most notably, the job market — would help drive up mortgage rates. Though higher mortgage rates are a valid bummer for homebuyers, they indicate a healthy, growing economy and solid employment levels. Though the pickup of the stock market is promising, investor activity doesn’t spill over widely enough into the masses to make an impact on the everyday lives of most Americans, and people are still struggling to get by in this pandemic that won’t let up. Our struggles are sure to get worse before they get better. On Thursday, the Trump administration pulled the plug on emergency lending programs and demanded a refund for monies unspent.

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