Mortgage rates at all-time lows

From ClarkHoward.com

MONEY-SAVING MOMENT: With mortgage rates at all-time lows, now may be a great time to refinance -- if you meet new stringent criteria.

The national average for 15-year mortgages is 4.1 percent, according to The Los Angeles Times. (Editor's note: Figures accurate as of June 11, 2010.) That means some people are getting in the upper 3s fixed for 15 years! Those who want to avoid closing costs might be getting in the low 4s. Meanwhile, the national average for 30-year mortgages is around 4.75 percent.

With the purchasing market having fallen off a cliff, lenders are eager to get you in a refi to drum up some business. They're desperate for those origination fees.

Right now, there's a bigger spread than normal between 15- and 30-year rates. You'll still need good credit; you'll have to intend to stay in your home to make a refi worthwhile; and you must appraise out.

Because of new stringent rules, if you don't have a lot of equity in home, appraisers are no longer erring on the high side for property valuations. That makes it much harder to qualify.

If you can, though, this is a phenomenal opportunity. It's also an ironic one because interest rates were trending higher before the European financial crisis of 2010.

Could mortgage rates go lower? No one knows.

But when world markets are unstable, foreigners pour their money into our debt instruments because we are still the safest place to hang with your dough. So that suggests it's possible for mortgage rates to drop further, but we'll have to wait and see...