Mortgage Rates Hit 3 1/2-Year High

The average interest rate on 30-year mortgages climbed to 8.36% for the week ending Feb. 11, up from 8.25% the week before, Freddie Mac said. It is the highest level since a rate of 8.42% in July 1996. Fifteen-year mortgages, a popular option for refinancing, also rose this week to an average rate of 7.96%, compared with 7.85% last week. On one-year, adjustable-rate mortgages, lenders were asking an average initial rate of 6.73% this week, up from 6.65% the previous week. The rates do not include add-on fees known as points, which averaged about 1% of the loan amount for all three types of mortgages.