Although economic reports were mixed this week, mortgage giant Freddie Mac announced that interest rates on long-term mortgages had dropped to a new all-time low in the latest week.

“Mortgage rates followed other interest rates lower this week amid reports of slower economic growth” said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. “The final estimate of economic growth in the fourth quarter was revised lower and personal incomes fell 0.2 percent in February, below the market consensus.

“On a positive note, pending existing home sales rose 2.1 percent in February, marking the second increase in three months as potential homebuyers are taking advantage of historically low mortgage rates and falling home prices. Serving as a spur to sales, housing affordability reached an all-time high in February 2009 since the series’ inception in 1971, according to the National Association of Realtors. By region, sales surged by nearly a third in the Northeast and Midwest, but fell in the West.”

The average rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage (FRM) decreased to 4.78 percent, excluding fees, during the week ended April 2, 2009, from 4.85 percent. The current rate is the lowest in the 30-year history of the Freddie Mac weekly survey. The average interest rate one year ago was 5.88 percent.

Rates on 15-year FRM loans also declined in the latest week, dropping to 4.52 percent, also a record low for the survey, down from 4.58 percent the previous week. Last year at this time, the average rate was 5.42 percent.

One-year adjustable rate mortgages carried an average rate of 4.75 percent, a drop from 4.85 percent the week before. During the same week of 2008, the average interest rate was 5.19 percent. The current rate represents a four-and-a-half year low.