Rate on 30-year mortgage falls to record 3.87 pct.

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WASHINGTON (AP) -- The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage fell this week to a record low, the ninth time that has happened in the last year. Even with the cheapest rates in history, the housing market remains depressed.
# f# r( N5 `# g4 e5 {% aMortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the rate on the 30-year loan dropped to 3.87 percent this week. That below the previous record of 3.88 hit two weeks ago.
2 b. h9 W$ M# x* vThe average on the 15-year fixed mortgage fell to 3.14 percent, also a record low. Records for mortgage rates date back to the 1950s. & F0 ~) g7 H8 J  h# O5 |$ O0 J
Mortgage rates tend to track the yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which fell below 1.9 percent this week.
) s# D" [) a: V2 \* ARates have been low for more than a year, and the average rate on the 30-year loan has hovered near 4 percent for more than three months. Yet few people can afford to buy a home or qualify for a loan. Those who can have already done so. $ ~8 B4 f1 e0 S. Q; d$ Y
High unemployment and scant wage gains have made it harder for many people to qualify for loans. Many don't want to sink money into a home that they fear could lose value over the next few years. / `$ j) y' U# c8 q# K4 J
Sales of previously occupied homes were dismal last year. New-home sales in 2011 were the worst on records going back half a century. / K: ?+ x+ e$ T3 v& b
Builders are hopeful that the low rates could boost sales next year. But so far, they have had a minimal impact. 1 m, {9 n! g9 H7 |
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Mortgage applications have risen slightly over the past four weeks, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. But they are coming off extremely low levels. 8 N' K( ~7 U+ R, c" b
To calculate the average rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country Monday through Wednesday of each week. ) O7 Q. t* C) N; V; ~
The average rates don't include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.
! O& l) Z: X" B( s+ X9 Y# x- d5 z! OThe average fee for the 30-year loan rose to 0.8 from 0.7; the average on the 15-year fixed mortgage was unchanged at 0.8.
9 L' W( x0 w8 t! W$ M( ]For the five-year adjustable loan, the average rate fell to 2.80 percent from 2.85 percent. The average on the one-year adjustable loan rose to 2.76 percent from 2.74 percent.
2 V7 U8 P1 A* }! BThe average fee on the five-year adjustable loan rose was unchanged at 0.7; the average on the one-year adjustable-rate loan was unchanged at 0.6.