NO SAVINGS: Home buyers in Orange County,...

NO SAVINGS: Home buyers in Orange County, where just 15% of the residents can afford to buy homes at current prices, shouldn’t expect much relief from the drop in the prime interest rate (A1). . . . Industry observers say the prime rate--for short-term commercial loans--probably won’t affect long-term loans such as fixed-rate, 30-year home mortgages, which are just under 10%. . . . The greatest effect for consumers might be a fractional decline in auto-loan rates, now 11% to 12%.