Rates on 15-Year, 30-Year Fixed Mortgages Fall

The average rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell this week to 6.99%, the mortgage company Freddie Mac said. The decline, from 7.06%, marked the fifth week in the last nine that the average has been below 7%. Five weeks ago, the rate sank to a four-year low of 6.89% as Asia’s financial turmoil spurred investment in the United States. Fifteen-year mortgages, a popular option for refinancing, averaged 6.59% this week, down from 6.65% last week. On one-year adjustable-rate mortgages, lenders were asking an average initial rate of 5.59%, up from 5.58%. The rates do not include add-on fees known as points.