Mortgage Rates hit 4-year High!
The 30-year fixed is now higher than it was at the end of July 2002, when the benchmark rate was 6.48 percent. The last time the 30-year fixed had been above 6.5 percent was the week of July 17, 2002, when the benchmark rate was 6.54 percent.
Rates fell after that, leading to the refinance boom of 2003 and early 2004. Now that boom has been muted. According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, just 36.6 percent of mortgage applications last week were from homeowners who wanted to refinance their loans. That's the lowest share of refinance activity since late July 2004.