Having ticked up to 4.09 percent two weeks ago, the highest rate so far this year, the average rate for a 30-year mortgage has dropped to 3.98 percent, versus 4.12 percent at the same time last year, according to Freddie Mac’s latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey.
The 30-year rate, which hit an all-time low of 3.31 percent in November 2012, and a three-year high of 4.58 percent in August 2013, has averaged roughly 6.7 percent over the past twenty years.
The recent dip comes on the heels of a second big drop in Chinese stock prices and weaker than expected pending and new home sale reports, and an associated flight to quality which dropped Treasury yields around 5 basis points.