Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®) in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 6.69 percent with an average 0.4 point for the week ending July 26, 2007, down from last week when it averaged 6.73. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.72 percent.

The 15-year FRM this week averaged 6.37 percent with an average 0.4 point, down slightly from last week when it averaged 6.38 percent. A year ago, the 15-year FRM averaged 6.34 percent.

Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) averaged 6.30 percent this week, with an average 0.4 point, down from last week when it averaged 6.35 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 6.35 percent.

One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs averaged 5.69 percent this week with an average 0.5 point, down from last week when it averaged 5.72 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 5.78 percent

With the increasing popularity of online shopping, more consumers are searching the internet for the next home loan. Lower prices, helpful education, and convenience are the leading factors for someone to start the online mortgage search. In fact, a study by Bankrate.com showed that the 30 year fixed rate offered online is a half point (0.50%) lower in interest rate than the same program offered online. In addition, the survey found that online approvals were faster and provided more convenience as borrowers applied for their loan at their leisure.If you are ready to jump online, it is important to understand the different ways you can shop for a loan. Most people start their shopping experience by using their favorite search engine (i.e. Google, Yahoo) or web portal (i.e. MSN, AOL) and entering “mortgage” as the keyword.

For example, using Yahoo! for the search will provide you with several different types of mortgage shopping choices.

1. REFERRAL SOURCE: LowerMyBills.com is a leading online referral source for various financial products including mortgage loans. While it is not entirely clear when you visit their site, they will collect your information and forward it to four competing lenders, similar to Lending Tree. Once you provide your information, each lender will contact you to verify your information and will possibly collect additional information to provide you with a mortgage rate quote.

2. INTEREST RATE AGGREGRATOR: Bank Rate (NASDAQ: RATE) is a consumer site that collects daily rate information from banks, lenders, and mortgage brokers. Through their online rate search, you can view numerous mortgage companies by state and their quoted interest rate by product and interest rate sorted by any criteria. If you are interested in getting more information from a particular company that is listed, Bank Rate provides their phone number and a link to the company’s website.

3. DIRECT LENDER WEBSITE: E-Loan launched in 1997 and today is one of the leading online lenders lending in all 50 states. Regional direct lenders offer many of the same programs and online conveniences in a smaller lending area. In addition, large lenders such as Countrywide offer their products and services via the internet.

4. LOCAL MORTGAGE BROKERS: Local mortgage brokers working with the local real estate experts often market themselves through search engines, mortgage directories, and email marketing campaigns.

With all of these choices, I would recommend using a combination of search tools to find a direct internet mortgage lender that lends in the state where your property is located. Whether you use an interest rate aggregator like Bankrate.com or a search engine like Yahoo! or Google, it is important to research at your state level. Once you have limited the online possibilities to state-based lenders, visit each lender’s website to further reduce the number of possibilities.

The next step is up to you! Most websites will provide online pricing for standard programs allowing you to comparison shop quickly. Whether you call or email, I would recommend a quick question or two with each lender to gauge their responsiveness, service levels, and general ability to make you feel comfortable with their company. Once you make your decision, sit back and relax knowing that you saved money and time by taking control of your online mortgage shopping experience.

According to a joint release from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau, housing starts in June were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,467,000 units. This is 2.3 percent higher than the 1,434,000 figure for May and a whopping 25.2 percent below the revised figure of 1,819,000 for June, 2006.

Single-family housing starts were substantially lower than starts as a whole with new residential construction in the 5-units-or-more category picking up the slack. SFR construction was down 0.2 percent from May but larger projects jumped up 12.9 percent from the earlier month.

Short-term adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) were unchanged during the last week, but longer term fixed and adjustable rate mortgages did move; if up or down depends on whether you accept the surveys behind the reports of Freddie Mac or the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).

According to Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 6.73 percent with an average of 0.4 point, up from 6.63 percent and 0.4 point the previous week. The MBA’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for approximately the same time frame reported that the average contract interest rate for the 30-year FRM was down four basis points to 6.61 percent from the previous week while points increased from 1.52 to 1.60 (including the origination fee.)

Food cost were up, but lower gas prices helped to move inflation to the small increase in five months.

The Labor Department reported Wednesday that the Consumer Price Index edged up a virtually minuscule 0.2 percent in June following a 0.7 percent surge in May, which had been the biggest jump in 20 months.

The price moderation reflected a 1.1 percent decline in gasoline prices, which pushed total energy costs down by 0.5 percent, offsetting a 0.5 percent rise in food costs.

In other economic news, construction of new homes rose in June following two straight months of declines, the Commerce Department reported.  The 2.3 percent increase in construction activity was better than the small decline that analysts had expected. It pushed home building to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.434 million units.

Core inflation, which excludes the volatile energy and food sectors, was also moderate in June, rising by just 0.2 percent. Through the first six months of this year, core inflation has been rising at an annual rate of 2.3 percent, down from a 2.6 percent rate of increase in the last half of 2006, indicating that the surge in energy and food costs are not becoming embedded in more widespread inflation problems.

According to Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey, rate are up again after a slight dip last week during the July 4th holiday.

The average rate for a 30 Year Fixed mortgage went up 0.1% to 6.73% while a 15 year fixed mortgage averages 6.39%, an 0.09% increase.

The 1 Year ARM average interest remained the same at 5.71% while the 5/1 Year ARM increased to 6.35% from 6.29%.

Source:http://www.freddiemac.com/dlink/html/PMMS/display/PMMSOutputYr.jsp?year=2007 

Bankrate.com’s annual closing cost study came out today and New York earned the top spot with the most expensive closing costs in the country with an average of $3,830 in origination, title, and closing costs. On the other end of the spectrum, an Indianopolis home buyer would only pay $2,339 for the same loan closing costs.

Texas has the second-highest origination and closing costs. The Lone Star State was No. 2 last year, too. After New York and Texas, the top five are rounded out by Florida, Pennsylvania and Ohio. The most populous state, California, was the 17th most expensive.

Source: http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/mortgages/2007/closing_costs_overview_1.asp

Home Depot Inc. forecast a bigger decline in 2007 profits on Tuesday, citing weakness in the U.S. housing market and the sale of its supply unit.The home improvement industry leader said it expected full-year profit to fall 15 percent to 18 percent to a range of $2.30 to $2.36 per share. In May, Home Depot said earnings per share would fall 9 percent this year to $2.54. In February, Home Depot had projected a 4 to 9 percent decline in per-share earnings.

The revised outlook reflects the pending sale later this year of the supply business that provides building materials to contractors. The May guidance included that unit, which is being sold for $10.3 billion to private equity firms.

Before you make any kind of purchase, big or small, you should do some amount of research to make sure that you’re getting a good deal for your money. When refinancing your mortgage, it’s absolutely essential that you do your research in order to avoid overpaying on your loan.

Here are some things to keep in mind when researching interest rates.

The goal of a mortgage refinance is to lower your finance payments by providing you with a loan that has a lower interest rate. If your financial situation has improved since you took out your original mortgage, you have a good chance of qualifying for lower interest rates on a mortgage refinance loan.

Two factors that will definitely affect your new interest rate are the length of the loan period and the type of loan that you are applying for. Typically, Adjustable Rate Mortgages will start you off with lower interest rates than a fixed rate mortgage, and loans with shorter durations will get you rates lower than a loan with a longer period. However, these general trends do not justify one type of loan over another.

Not every refinancing option is good for every situation. If you pick the wrong type of loan, you may overpay in thousands of dollars and could potentially lose your house if you can’t make your finance payments.

When shopping for refinance loans, it’s important to make your decision based on more than just the interest rates. Lower interest rates alone do not automatically mean the loan is the best option for you. Some mortgage programs offer low rates to their customers only to charge thousands of dollars in fees to recoup their profits. Considering the average homeowner refinances or sells every 7 to 10 years, it is not a wise decision to take out a high-fee loan strictly to receive lower interest rates.

This week, for the third straight week in a row, interest rates have dropped.

Keep in mind that generally when you see headlines saying rates have dropped, the loan product is usually a 30 year, or 15 year  fixed mortgage. This doesn’t mean that rates are not lower across the board, but ARM rates generally do not make the headlines.  When you see headlines like this, and you have a loan with a higher interest rate, or a short term (a 3 year ARM, or something like that), you may want to talk to a trusted mortgage professional and weigh your options.

It is also interesting to note that mortgage application volume compared to last year has increased. Additionally, the volume of mortgage applications for new purchases increased this week.   This means that despite the drop in the real estate market, consumers are still looking to finance their property dreams.

Remember, when you have a mortgage, it pays to be prudent, and keep in tune with the mortgage market.    If you are looking to become a property owner soon, be sure to check national websites, and know exactly what the average rates look like.  That way, when you receive a rate quote, you will know if what you are being offered is in line with the marketplace.