Mortgage Rates Drop To 5-month Low As Coronavirus Fears Fuel The Bond Market

“3.625% is widely available, and that was already getting to be the case last Friday,” said Matthew Graham, chief operating officer at Mortgage News Daily. “Today brings 3.5% into the Mix for more than just a few of the most aggressive lenders.”That is the best rate since early September, and Graham said he believes the market is “only one to two solid days away from 3.375%.”

As fears over the coronavirus roil global financial markets, investors are rushing to the relative safety of bonds. As a result, mortgage rates are falling. The 30-year fixed mortgage loosely follows the yield on the 10-year Treasury.

The average rate on the 30-year fixed hit a recent high in December of 3.84%, but slid steadily last week and is now falling more steeply, according to Mortgage News Daily.