NEW YORK, Jan. 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Economic worries helped push mortgage rates lower, with the average conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rate now 6.14 percent. According to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey of large lenders, the average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.35 discount and origination points.

The average 15-year fixed rate mortgage popular for refinancing plummeted to 5.76 percent, and the average jumbo 30-year fixed rate sank to 7.20 percent. Adjustable mortgage rates were lower also, with the average one-year ARM dipping to 6.10 percent, and the average 5/1 ARM retreating to 6.14 percent.

2008 ushered in lower mortgage rates, with economic worries rising and mortgage rates falling. Declining new home sales and weaker economic indicators gave investors new reasons to worry about the economy. Such worries typically prompt investors to park money in safe havens such as Treasury securities. Fixed mortgage rates are closely related to yields on long-term government bonds. With four weeks and an entire cycle of economic data before the next scheduled meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee, sentiment about the direction of interest rates and the economy may swing back and forth as worries alternate between economic growth and the outlook for inflation.

Fixed rate mortgages are currently the most attractive option for borrowers. Five months ago, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 6.71 percent, meaning that a $200,000 loan would have carried a monthly payment of $1,291.88. Now that the average conforming 30-year fixed rate is 6.14 percent, the same $200,000 loan carries a monthly payment of $1,217.16.

                              SURVEY RESULTS
  30-year fixed: 6.14% -- down from 6.31% last week (avg. points: 0.35)
  15-year fixed: 5.76% -- down from 5.97% last week (avg. points: 0.31)
     5/1 ARM: 6.14% -- down from 6.31% last week (avg. points: 0.27)

Bankrate's national weekly mortgage survey is conducted each Wednesday from data provided by the top 10 banks and thrifts in the top 10 markets.

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Source: Bankrate, Inc.

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