Rates for 30-year home loans edged lower for the second straight week, but remained above last month's record lows.
The mortgage company Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage was 5.06 percent this week, down from 5.09 percent a week earlier.
Rates dropped to a record low of 4.71 percent in early December, pushed down by an aggressive government campaign to reduce consumers' borrowing costs, but then rose steadily for the rest of the month.
Freddie Mac says the average rate on a 15-year fixed-rate mortgages fell to 4.45 percent, down from 4.50 percent last week.
The rates do not include add-on fees known as points. One point is equal to 1 percent of the total loan amount.