Dec. 18--Mortgage rates have hit a fresh low for the year.
The average for a 30-year fixed loan fell to 3.80% this week, down from 3.93% a week earlier, mortgage company Freddie Mac said Thursday. Lenders, meanwhile, offered a 15-year fixed mortgage at 3.09%, compared to 3.20% last week.
Plunging oil prices and concerns over the global economy drove yields on the 10-year Treasury note this week to their lowest level since May 2013.
That sent mortgage rates down as well, because they tend to track the long-term Treasury yield.
The mortgage giant's survey asks lenders each Monday morning through midday Wednesday about the terms they are offering to low-risk borrowers on loans up to $417,000.
