Lending Landscape - March 27, 2008

After a down week last week, mortgage rates were mixed this week seeing only slight movement in either direction. Fixed rates edged down 2 basis points -

The government-sponsored loan buyer said 30-year fixed-rate loans averaged 5.85% for the week ending Thursday, down from 5.87% last week.

Last year at this time, the 30-year rate averaged 6.16%, Freddie Mac said.

Short term rates on the other hand moved up despite a rate cut from the Fed last week -

Rates on five-year adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) averaged 5.67%, up from 5.56% last week. A year ago, the 5-year rate averaged 5.88%.

One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs averaged 5.24%, up from 5.15% last week. At this time a year ago, the 1-year ARM averaged 5.43%.

Credit standards for obtaining a loan tightened further as lenders determined standards for the new, higher loan limits. Both conforming standards and FHA were raised virtually eliminating no money down loans for borrowers with dicey credit.

With a smaller buyer pool eligible to buy homes, expect builders to offer even more attractive prices and bonuses on new homes.