Mortgage interest rates for 30-year loans fell to their lowest point of the year, according to Freddie Mack and a report on MarketWatch. Mortgage interest rates are currently at 4.93% with an average .7 point. That’s down from 5% during the last period and 4.86% compared to a year ago. “The National Association of Realtors reported that median house prices are recovering in more local areas in the latest quarter. On a year-over-year basis for the 152 areas the association reports on, 91 metropolitan areas had positive growth in the first quarter of this year. This compares to 67 areas showing positive annual growth in the fourth quarter of 2009 and only 30 cities in the third quarter of last year,” said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac chief economist, in a statement and reported by MarketWatch.

This news coupled with the fact that banks are repossessing homes at a faster rate means it could be a great time to buy a bargain. RealtyTrac released new information saying fewer homeowners are falling behind on their payments, but banks are accelerating the rate at which they repossess homes. In April 92,432 homes were repossessed which is the final stage of foreclosure. The April 2010 foreclosure rate represents a 45 percent increase compared to April 2009, says RealtyTrac.

Despite this drastic increase, it appears that foreclosures are starting to plateau. The number of homeowners receiving default notices because they missed a mortgage payment was down by 12 percent in April, and down by 27 percent compared to a year ago. According to MarketWatch, RealtyTrac’s CEO, James Saccacio released a statement saying he believes foreclosures are plateauing, “but at a very high level that will not drop off in the near future.” Government programs have suppressed foreclosures, which has only created a backlog. Some economists worry that lenders will process the backlog of foreclosures too quickly, flooding the market and depressing home prices.

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