Freddie Mac: Average 30-year mortgage rate levels off at 4.1%

The average rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage leveled off this week at a record low for the year -- 4.1%, the same as last week, a Freddie Mac survey showed.

The 15-year fixed mortgage averaged 3.25%, up from 3.23% last week, said Freddie Mac, which asks lenders about the terms they are offering to solid borrowers who pay less than 1% in upfront fees and discount points.

The latest survey, released Thursday, showed the average start rates on variable mortgages had edged slightly higher as well, although all the rates were near their low points for the year.

Like mortgage rates, home prices appear to be leveling off, recent surveys have shown, with other news on housing mixed.

Sales of previously owned homes have risen for four months straight, noted Freddie Mac chief economist Frank Nothaft, while new home sales have fallen for three months. But construction of new homes has been on the rise.

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