Average fixed mortgage rates followed 10-year Treasury yields higher and rose for the third consecutive week, according to Freddie Mac.

At 3.85%, the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is just below the high for 2015.

“Mortgage rates rose for the third consecutive week as 10-year Treasury yields continued to climb,” said Len Kiefer, deputy chief economist for Freddie Mac.

“The labor market continues to improve with U.S. economy adding 223,000 jobs in April, a solid rebound from merely 85,000 job gains in March. Also, the unemployment rate dipped to 5.4% in April as the participation rate ticked up to 62.8% and jobless claims were far less than expected.”

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.85% with an average 0.6 point for the week ending May 14, 2015, up from last week when it averaged 3.80%. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.20%.

The 15-year FRM this week averaged 3.07% with an average 0.6 point, up from last week when it averaged 3.02%. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 3.29%.

The 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage averaged 2.89% this week with an average 0.5 point, down from last week when it averaged 2.90%. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 3.01%.

The 1-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 2.48% this week with an average 0.4 point, up from last week when it averaged 2.46%. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 2.43%.

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http://www.housingwire.com/articles/33891-mortgage-rates-move-higher-for-third-week-in-a-row