Mortgage rates rise

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Lowered expectations for a recession led to a lift in mortgage rates this week, Freddie Mac reported Thursday.

The government-sponsored loan buyer said the rate on a 30-year fixed-rate loan rose to an average 6.11 percent for the week ending Dec. 13, from 5.96 percent last week.

At this time last year, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.12 percent.

"November's employment report showed stronger job growth, no change in the unemployment rate and a jump in wages, suggesting to some market participants that the probability of an upcoming recession might be lower than originally thought," Freddie Mac (FRE, Fortune 500) chief economist Frank Nothaft said in a statement.

"This led to a rise in interest rates for U.S. Treasury securities this week and mortgage rates followed," Nothaft explained.

Freddie Mac said 15-year fixed-rate loans averaged 5.78 percent, up from 5.65 percent last week. A year ago, the 15-year rate averaged 5.86 percent.

Five-year adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) averaged 5.89 percent this week, up from 5.75 percent last week. The five-year ARM averaged 5.92 percent a year ago.

One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs averaged 5.50 percent, up from 5.46 percent last week. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 5.45 percent.