(MONEY Magazine) – If you're thinking of buying a home, now may be the time to lock in a great mortgage: forecasters say that rates figure to remain in the single digits until the economic recovery builds up early next year. The average fixed rate, now 9.5%, may even fall slightly in coming months. Says James Christian, who runs an economic consulting firm in Alexandria, Va.: ''It would not surprise me to see rates hover at 9.25% this fall.'' The best deals in our table on page 14 are already as low as 9%. Among the reasons: the prospect of moderate inflation of 4% has helped hold general interest rates down; 10-year Treasury yields, which influence mortgage rates, are 8.08%. And with the recession crimping business, mortgage lenders are eager to make loans -- and are likely to shave rates to encourage more , deals.

CHART: NOT AVAILABLE CREDIT: Bank Rate Monitor CAPTION: THE BEST SAVINGS YIELDS IN THE U.S.