Glen Creno
The Arizona Republic
Aug. 20, 2004

Mortgage rates dipped again this week, continuing a summer slide that is clearing the way for another record year in the metro Phoenix housing market.

The average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage fell to 5.81 percent, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. The bench mark rate has jumped around with the economy since hitting 6.34 percent in the middle of May. It now stands at its lowest point in five weeks.

There was some concern in the housing business when rates broke above 6 percent at the end of April, even though they remained at historically attractive levels.

Kay Holderman, an agent in Russ Lyon Realty's Pinnacle Peak office, said the worry was that rates would "trend up in an unbroken line."

Higher rates can knock borderline buyers out of the market, not good in a metro area where affordability is a key pitch.

Holderman said the market has stayed hot and picked up a notch as rates again fell below 6 percent, enticing even high-end buyers who aren't opposed to saving a buck.

"They have been every bit as active in the market," she said. "They recognize opportunity."

Jay Luber, president of Lifestyle Lending Group, said the mortgage market has been tracking a bond market that's keenly attuned to erratic economic indicators.

"It's a very emotional market," he said.

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