| North Palm Beach, Fla. -- Nov. 27, 2009 (Bankrate.com) -- Rates on 5/1 jumbo ARMs in the United States rose 3 basis points to 4.81 percent on Friday, 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 0.66 discount and origination points.
A 5/1 jumbo ARM is an adjustable-rate mortgage, or ARM, that has an initial interest rate for the first five years, and which changes annually thereafter, based on an index. A jumbo mortgage is a home loan that exceeds a certain amount (the 2007 limit is $417,000 in the continental U.S., and $625,500 in Alaska, Hawaii and the U.S. Virgin Islands). Jumbo mortgages generally have a slightly higher interest rate than smaller (sometimes called "conventional" or "conforming") mortgages. Someone taking out a $435,000.00 5/1 jumbo ARM at the current average would pay $2,284.92 a month for the first five years of the loan. The rate would adjust annually thereafter. Nationally, the highest rate Bankrate found on a 5/1 jumbo ARM was 8.250 percent. The lowest rate was 3.375 percent. Six months ago, the average rate was 5.13 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. | 
