Mortgage rates drop after Fannie, Freddie takeover

 Mortgage rates fell sharply Monday, as investors reacted to the government’s takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The government’s takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac – mortgage titans that own or guarantee about half of all U.S. mortgages – will help borrowers who had been nervously waiting for the best time to get out of the adjustable-rate mortgages they took out during the housing boom.

The average interest rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage dropped 0.3 of a percentage point to 6.04 on Monday, according to HSH Associates, and it’s expected to decline a little more in the coming weeks.