30-year mortgage rates fall to 3.90%

WASHINGTON — The average rate on the 30-year mortgage edged down this week to hover again above record lows. Cheaper rates have spurred modest improvements in the battered housing market, but not enough to signal a recovery.

Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the rate on the 30-year home loan fell to 3.90 percent from 3.95 percent the previous week. That’s slightly above the 3.87 percent average rate hit two weeks ago, which was the lowest since long-term mortgages began in the 1950s.

The average on the 15-year fixed mortgage fell to 3.17 percent from 3.19 percent a week ago. It hit a record 3.14 percent four weeks ago.

Mortgage rates have been below 4 percent for more than three months. That has made homebuying and refinancing more attractive for those who can qualify.

To calculate the average rates, Freddie Mac, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp., surveys lenders across the country Monday through Wednesday of each week.

The average rates don’t include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

The average fees for the 30-year and 15-year loans were unchanged at 0.8.

For the five-year adjustable loan, the average rate rose to 2.83 percent from 2.80 percent, and the average fee was unchanged at 0.7.

The average on the one-year adjustable loan ticked down to 2.72 percent from 2.73 percent, and the average fee was unchanged at 0.6.