Here's a look at the state of interest rates on five common consumer banking products and the latest rates from
Bankrate.com's weekly national survey of large banks and thrifts conducted July 16, 2008.
Mortgages Rate: 6.42 percent (30-year fixed) Average points: 0.45
Mortgage rates moved modestly down this week.
The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage slipped 6 basis points, to 6.42 percent. A basis point is one-hundredth of a percentage point.
The 30-year fixed has now fallen for three consecutive weeks, marking only the second time this year the rate has fallen three
weeks in a row.
The average 15-year fixed -- a popular option for refinancing -- also fell 6 basis points, to 5.95 percent. The average jumbo
30-year fixed was unchanged at 7.64 percent.
The one-year adjustable-rate mortgage rose 4 basis points, to 6.21 percent. The popular 5/1 ARM remained unchanged at 6.05 percent.
Mortgage applications rose for the second straight week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. For the week ending
July 11, applications rose a seasonally adjusted 1.7 percent when compared to one week earlier.
Refinancing activity rose 6.9 percent and accounted for the bulk of the increase. Applications for new purchases actually dropped
by 1.7 percent.
Home equity products Rates: 5.5 percent (line of credit); 7.93 percent (loan)
Rates on home equity products rose slightly this week.
The average home equity line of credit -- or HELOC -- rose 2 basis points, to 5.5 percent.
Home equity loan rates ticked up 1 basis point, to 7.93 percent.
In other home equity news, customers with home equity lines of credit at IndyMac Bank -- which recently collapsed -- learned
their HELOCs have been frozen, pending a review of each account by federal regulators.
Auto loans Rates: 7.09 percent (60-month, new car); 7.73 percent (36-month, used car)
A few of the auto loan terms took a slight dip in this week's survey. The 60-month new-car loan did not, however. It is still 7.09 percent.
The 48-month new-car loan rate fell 1 basis point to 7.05 percent. Similarly, the 36-month new-car loan rate is also down 1 basis point to
6.99 percent.
For used cars, the 36-month loan rate dropped 1 basis point to 7.73 percent. The 48-month used-car loan rate held tight to
last week's rate of 7.74 percent.
Researchers say that there could be a silver lining to higher gas prices. The Associated Press reported Saturday that a new
study by Michael Morrisey of the University of Alabama at Birmingham and David Grabowski of Harvard Medical School found a 2.3 percent decline
in auto fatalities for every 10 percent increase in gas prices.
The study looked at data on auto accident deaths from 1985 to 2006. Based on current gas prices now, they predict that there
could be a decrease of as many as 1,000 fewer deaths per month.
Certificates of deposit Yields: 2.31 percent (1-year CD yield); 3.43 percent (5-year CD yield)
Nothing exciting, but we're seeing some "decent enough" movement in CDs this week considering the craziness in the financial world. As a safe
haven you can bet people are trying to shield their money in CDs even though inflation will chomp away at it.
So, in that respect there's no real reason for banks to tantalize investors with higher yields. On the other hand, these are
simply awful times throughout much of the banking industry, so plenty of institutions are trying to rake in deposits.
The average yield for one-year CDs added 4 basis points to come in at 2.31 percent, while the average five-year yield held
steady at 3.43 percent. On the jumbo side, the one-year gained 2 basis points for an average yield of 2.54 percent, while the five-year popped
up by 5 basis points to 3.69 percent.
Money market accounts remain at 0.72 percent for the second week in a row.
Credit cards Rates: 13.42 percent (standard fixed); 11.66 percent (standard variable)
This week variable-rate averages declined while fixed rates stood still. For standard, gold and platinum cards, the fixed rate average stayed
at 11.88 percent but the variable rate dropped 2 basis points to 11.25 percent. The same pattern occurred with standard cards -- the fixed rate
remained 13.42 percent and the variable rate sunk 1 basis point to 11.66 percent.
Nearly 20 percent of 3,004 people in credit counseling said they spent their tax stimulus checks on reducing credit card debt,
according to a new national survey from Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Atlanta. About 30 percent put the money toward everyday
purchases, such as food and gas.
Estimate how long it will take to eliminate your balances by using Bankrate's
debt pay-down calculator.
Authorized users listen up. Last week, Fair Isaac Corp., the creator of the popular FICO credit score, announced a new scoring model called FICO 08 that will ignore authorized user accounts when it calculates a consumer's FICO score. The move closes a loophole that allowed borrowers with poor credit histories to pay to be added as authorized users on the accounts of people with great credit histories, and thus improve their own FICO scores. The new scoring model is expected to be made available to lenders in September.
