Of late, long-term mortgage rates have been fluctuating. In July the average rate on a 30-year fixed rate U.S. mortgage fell to below three-and-a-half percent, reported mortgage finance company Freddie Mac.
However, following strong employment reports fixed mortgage rates have been moving higher in the past couple of weeks.
"Fixed mortgage rates inched up again this week following stronger-than-expected employment reports. The economy added 163,000 jobs in July, well above the market consensus forecast of 100,000, and the largest increase since February. In addition, the number of announced corporate layoffs fell 45 percent in July compared to last July and was the third time this year that announced layoffs were less than the same month in 2011 according to The Challenger Report," stated Frank Nothaft, vice-president and chief economist, Freddie Mac, in a statement.
These fluctuations in mortgage rates make it imperative for those seeking home loans to check out the wide array of options available in the market. "Long-term mortgage rates have fallen to record lows in recent weeks, which make it a good time for homeowners to shop around for a favourable home loan, whether it is for a new purchase or a refinance," said Grace Cheng, founder and CEO of DailyMarkets.com, in a statement. "When you get a cheap mortgage, you pay less interest on your loans, and thus have more money to spend or to saves."
And, to help consumers make informed choices, personal finance websites such as Dailymarkets.com, Mortgagecalculator.org, Moneysupermarket.com, Frograte.com, etc., have tools that help consumers find the best mortgage rates at all time. When earlier only real estate professionals had access to mortgage calculators today any homebuyer with access to the Internet can use it.