NEW YORK (CNN/Money) -
Mortgage rates rose for the fourth consecutive week on positive economic reports, a survey showed Thursday.
According to Freddie Mac, the 30-year long-term mortgage averaged 7.18 percent for the week ending March 22, with an average 0.7 point payable up front to the lender. The rate was up slightly from last week's 7.14 percent. The mortgage rate averaged 6.91 percent at this time last year.
The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.69 percent this week, with an average 0.7 point, also a bit higher than last week's average 6.65 percent. The rate averaged 6.46 percent during the same week a year ago.
(For more on interest rates, check out CNN/Money's Bond & Rate center.)
At the same time, one-year adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) indexed to the Treasury averaged 5.11 percent this week, with an average 0.7 point, unchanged from last week's average. Last year at the same time, the rate averaged 6.19 percent.
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"Interest rates for fixed-rate mortgages edged up this week as the market tried to decipher new releases of economic indicators and how strong the economy will be in the first three months of the year," said Robert Van Order, Freddie Mac chief international economist.
Van Order added that inflation remains tame, which should keep mortgage rates from moving a substantial amount higher in the near future.
Freddie Mac (FRE: down $0.29 to $63.20, 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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