| North Palm Beach, Fla. -- Nov. 25, 2009 (Bankrate.com) -- Mortgage rates on 20-year fixed mortgages in the United States fell 3 basis points to 5.15 percent on Wednesday, according to Bankrate.com's daily Your Best Interest report. A basis point is one-hundredth of a percent. The mortgages in the survey had an average of 0.61 discount and origination points.
A 20-year fixed mortgage is a loan that has an interest rate that stays the same for the 20-year term of the loan. The principal amount is reduced, slowly at first, and then at an accelerating pace, over the life of the loan. Someone taking out a $165,000.00 20-year fixed mortgage at the current average would pay $1,102.65 a month for the life of the loan. Nationally, the highest rate on a 20-year fixed mortgage was 10.000 percent. The lowest rate was 4.150 percent. Six months ago, the average rate was 4.91 percent. To see all of the results of Bankrate.com's surveys, go to www.bankrate.com. The Your Best Interest report is a daily service of Bankrate.com, a financial news and information service based in North Palm Beach, Fla. Bankrate surveys more than 300 financial products from more than 4,800 institutions in all 50 states. |