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Mortgage rates edge up
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July 12, 2001: 12:24 p.m. ET
Long-term rates, ARMs climb for second consecutive week
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Mortgage rates rose for the second time in as many weeks as worse-than-expected unemployment numbers suggest a slower recovery for the nation's economy.
According to Freddie Mac, the benchmark 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 7.21 percent for the week ending July 13, up from 7.19 percent the previous week. A year ago, the same mortgage averaged 8.09 percent.
The average this week for the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage was 6.76 percent, up from the previous week's average of 6.74 percent. A year ago, the same rate stood at 7.80 percent.
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One-year adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) averaged 5.79 percent, up from last week's average of 5.71 percent. The same mortgage averaged 7.22 percent at this time last year.
"We see long-term fixed rate mortgages remaining in the low 7 percent range at least through the summer," Freddie Mac chief economist Robert Van Order said.
"One factor to keep in mind is the pace at which the recovery is likely to proceed. The most recent employment figures disappointed the capital markets by dropping twice as much as was expected. This indicates that the recovery may take longer to unwind than the market has been expecting," Van Order said.
[Click here to see a breakdown of U.S. mortgage rates by region]
Freddie Mac (FRE: Research, Estimates), or Federal Home Mortgage Corp., is a publicly traded company the government established in 1970 to provide a flow of funds to mortgage lenders.
It buys mortgages from banks, bundles them and then resells them as mortgage-backed securities. Its products, and the products of other similar entities, have become increasingly popular as an alternative to government-backed bonds, particularly with international investors. 
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