Florida Mortgage Rates Inch Up Another .02 Percent; Look For More of the Same

Florida home loans are on the rise again, albeit slightly. The average rates on 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages — the most common home loan option and the industry’s benchmark — averaged 6.62 percent last week, up from 6.60 percent the week before. It’s the highest national average since the week ending June 20, 2002, according to Freddie Mac, which conducts a weekly survey.

Yes, the rock-bottom rates of the past several years are long gone — but things could still be a lot worse, as you can see by the chart above. Rates exceeded 8 percent as recently as 2000.

Also this week, rates on 15-year, fixed-rate loans, a popular choice for consumers interested in refinancing a Florida home mortgage loan, rose to an average of 6.23 percent, up from 6.20 percent. Rates for one-year adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 5.61 percent, down slightly from last week’s 5.62 average.

Rates on five-year adjustable-rate mortgages also edged down slightly, dropping to 6.21 percent, from 6.23 percent last week.

The Florida mortgage rates reported here do not include origination fees known as points — which consumers often purchase up front, so as to lower the mortgage rate they’ll pay throughout. The 15- and 30-year mortgages carried an average of 0.4 points. The one-year ARM had an average fee of 0.7 point, and the five-year ARM carried an average fee of 0.6 point.

Florida home loan seekers are probably looking at more of the same — slow, steady gains — in rates between now and the end of 2006. However, we’ve seen plenty of signs of cooling in the Florida housing market, so a few more interest rate hikes could be largely offset by getting a home at a price below listing. Keep your eyes open for a good deal.