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Mortgages rates inch up
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July 23, 1998: 2:51 p.m. ET
Rates see little change after Greenspan's testimony before Congress
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Mortgage interest rates crept up slightly in the past week, with the 30-year fixed rate barely inching up .02 percent, mortgage firm Freddie Mac said Thursday.
For the week ending July 17, the rate on U.S. 30-year fixed mortgages rose to an average 6.96 percent from 6.94 percent last week, while 15-year loans also inched up to 6.63 percent from 6.60 percent.
One-year adjustable rate mortgages also climbed a bit to an average 5.65 percent from 5.64 percent. A year ago, the 30-year rate averaged 7.43 percent, the 15-year 6.98 percent and the one-year adjustable 5.54 percent.
"Mortgage rates saw little change this week following Federal Reserve Chairman Greenspan's report to Congress," Freddie Mac chief economist Robert Van Order said.
He added, "Most economists expect no movement in rates from the Fed, based on Mr. Greenspan's remarks, and that is good for the mortgage market."
On Tuesday, the Commerce Department said construction starts on new homes and apartments soared in June, rising much higher than analysts had expected.
Total starts rose 5.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.615 million units last month, the second-highest this year after February's 1.616 million.
Freddie Mac said lenders charged an average 1.1 in fees and points on all three types of loans, all unchanged from last week.
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