“The typical monthly mortgage payment for Southern California buyers last month was $1,193, up from $1,052 in May. Adjusted for inflation, current payments are 46% below typical payments in the spring of 1989, the peak of the prior real estate cycle” states the Los Angeles Times on July 16th. I checked and in 1989, the average interest for a 30-year fixed mortgage was 10.32%. That is twice as much as today’s rates!
The current interest rate for a 30-year fixed conforming loan is 5.125% and 5.875% for a jumbo loan. A 5/1 Year ARM is 4% for conforming loans and 5.375% for jumbo loans. A 5/1 Interest Only conforming loan has a 4.125% interest rate and a jumbo loan has a 5.5% interest rate.
Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben Bernanke, commented yesterday that he thought rates were going to remain low. I hope he is correct as these low rates continue to stimulate our real estate market.
