Mortgage rates flat as market remains cautious, home prices rise

• "Housing is in a similar phase of the economic cycle as many other consumer goods. While there is strong latent demand, low supply has caused prices to rise as shortages restrict the amount of sales activity that otherwise would occur," chief economist Sam Khater commented.
• Mortgage rates remained flat indicating cautious investors for the economy path forward and potential key decisions made by the Federal Reserve, Zillow economist Matthew Speakman stated.
• 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 2.86% for the week ending Aug 19, marginally lower from 2.87% recorded in prior week and down from 2.99% averaged in same period a year ago, according to the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Survey.
• Sentiment remains low with data on consumer sentiment and retail sales pointing to rising cases and delta variant hindering economic recovery.
• Also, homebuyer confidence dropped to 13-month low levels in August as costs climbed.
• 15-year FRM averages 2.16% up from last week when it averaged 2.15% and down from 2.54% in year ago.
• 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable rate mortgage averaged 2.43%, down from 2.44% in prior week, and lower from 2.91% a year ago.
• Marketwatch cites a report released this week from Bankrate.com, "found that only 19% of homeowners with a mortgage they had prior to the pandemic have actually refinanced since the COVID-19 crisis began, despite the record-low mortgage rates on offer during that time. And 47% of homeowners haven’t even considered a refinance."
• Mortgage applications dropped for second week, as per MBA data.
• A new economic forecast from Fannie Mae estimates that home sales will only occur at a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 6.55M units in Q4, down considerably from the rate of 7.58M units during the same time in 2020.
• "While mortgage rates have drifted downward and in theory provide greater purchasing power to potential borrowers, in practice, given current supply-side and affordability challenges, we expect that benefit to be limited," Fannie Mae deputy chief economist Mark Palim commented.