BANKING & FINANCE - Dec. 24, 1993

30-Year Mortgage Rates Hold: Thirty-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 7.17% this week, unchanged from last week, according to a national survey by the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. It was the highest rate since mortgages averaged 7.25% during the week ended Dec. 2. They averaged 7.14% during the week ended Dec. 9. On one-year adjustable-rate mortgages, lenders were asking an average initial rate of 4.21%, up from 4.20% last week. Fifteen-year mortgages, an increasingly popular option for refinancings, averaged 6.69% this week, down from 6.70% a week earlier. The rates do not include add-on fees known as points.