For Immediate Release

CONTACT: corprel@freddiemac.com
or (703) 903-3933

30-Year Fixed Rate Falls Below 5 Percent

Long- and Short-Term Rates Are Down This Week

McLean, VA – 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 4.98 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending November 5, 2009, down from last week when it averaged 5.03 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.20 percent.

The 15-year FRM this week averaged 4.40 percent with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 4.46 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 5.88 percent.

The five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 4.35 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 4.42 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 6.19 percent.

The one-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 4.47 percent this week with an average 0.5 point, down from last week when it averaged 4.57 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 5.25 percent.

(Average commitment rates should be reported along with average fees and points to reflect the total cost of obtaining the mortgage.)

"Mortgage rates fell back this week pulling interest rates on 30-year fixed mortgages under 5 percent," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. "Lower mortgage rates should help homeowners lower their monthly payments and feed the ongoing recovery in the housing market." For instance, the Federal Housing Finance Agency reported that Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have financed more than 3.5 million refinance loans during the first nine months of 2009. Freddie Mac estimates that borrowers who refinanced their conventional loan during the third quarter reduced their interest rate by a median of 1.1 percentage points, which will save these borrowers an aggregate of $3 billion in mortgage payments over the next 12 months.

"Further, pending sales for existing homes rose for the eighth straight month in September to the strongest pace since December 2006, while spending on private residential construction jumped 3.9 percent and represented the largest gain since July 2003. In the third quarter of this year, residential fixed investment added almost a full percentage point to economic growth."

Freddie Mac was established by Congress in 1970 to provide liquidity, stability and affordability to the nation's residential mortgage markets. Freddie Mac supports communities across the nation by providing mortgage capital to lenders. Over the years, Freddie Mac has made home possible for one in six homebuyers and more than five million renters.

Summary of Survey Results

Freddie Mac defines its regions as follows:

Northeast: NY, NJ, PA, DE, MD, DC, VA, WV, ME, NH, VT, MA, RI, CT
Southeast: NC, SC, TN, KY, GA, AL, FL, MS, PR, VI
North Central: OH, IN, IL, MI, WI, MN, IA, ND, SD
Southwest: TX, LA, NM, OK, AR, MO, KS, CO, NE, WY
West: CA, AZ, NV, OR, WA, UT, ID, MT, HI, AK, GU

Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) is for informational purposes only and Freddie Mac is not responsible for business decisions made based on the reported results of the PMMS. Freddie Mac may change the methodology used to conduct the PMMS survey at any time and without notice.

DEFINITIONS

Commitment Rate is the interest rate a lender would charge to lend mortgage money to a qualified borrower exclusive of the fees and points required by the lender. This commitment rate applies only to conventional financing on conforming mortgages with loan-to-value rates of 80 percent or less.

ARM Index - is the One-year Treasury

Loan to Value Ratio (LTV) is the ratio of the loan amount of a mortgage loan to the lower of the appraisal value or purchase price of the property securing the loan.

Origination Fees and Discount Points are the total charged by the lender at settlement. One point equals one percent of the loan amount.

Margin is a fixed amount added to the underlying index to establish the fully indexed rate for an ARM.

Weighted Averages for the Primary Mortgage Market Survey have been adjusted as of October 16, 2008. The new weights use the dollar volume of conventional mortgage originations within the 1-unit Freddie Mac loan limit as reported under Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) for 2007. The weights are listed in the table below.

Primary Mortgage Market Survey Results