Key Mortgage Rate Edges Downward

The 11th District cost of funds--the rate to which many adjustable-rate home mortgage loans are tied--slipped to 4.949% in November from 4.957% in October, the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco reported. However, the rate, which tends to lag changes in market interest rates by several months, remained slightly above its level of a year earlier, when it stood at 4.835%. The rate measures the average cost of funds for the thrifts and other financial institutions in the bank’s 11th District, which covers California, Arizona and Nevada.