By Crissinda Ponder • Bankrate.com
Mortgage rates dropped this week following the stock market turmoil that began in China and spread everywhere.
Chinese stocks have been plummeting this week, which has caused a domino effect on a global scale.
U.S. stocks also tumbled, prompting investors to flock to government bonds, which sent prices up and yields down. The 10-year Treasury yield fell below 2% for the first time since late April, but has since rebounded.
The huge swings on the equity side have translated into huge swings on our side, which can be a good thing,” says Brett Sinnott, vice president of capital markets for CMG Financial, a mortgage banking firm in San Ramon, California.
A look at this week’s rates
The benchmark 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 4.03% from 4.06%, according to Bankrate’s Aug. 26 survey of large lenders. A year ago, it was 4.23%. Four weeks ago, the rate was 4.09%. The mortgages in this week’s survey had an average total of 0.18 discount and origination points. Over the past 52 weeks, the 30-year fixed rate has averaged 4.02%. This week’s rate is 0.01 percentage points higher than the 52-week average.
The benchmark 15-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 3.19% from 3.28%.
The benchmark 30-year fixed-rate jumbo mortgage fell to 3.92% from 3.97%.
The benchmark 5/1 adjustable-rate mortgage mortgage fell to 3.16% from 3.24%.
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