Here's an article discussing the mortgage rates in comparison to last year

Mortgage rates continue to hover near record lows
Jan 19 2012 6:47PM
Results from Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey for the week ending January 19 shows that average mortgage rates remained near rates from the previous week and continue to offer homebuyers high affordability.

According to the survey, 30-year fixed rate mortgages averaged 3.88 percent and reached a new record low, beating the mark set the previous week when rates averaged 3.89 percent. This time a year ago, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.74 percent.

The 15-year FRM averaged 3.17 percent, slightly higher than the previous week when it averaged 3.16 percent. Despite the small increase, the rate is still significantly lower than the this time in 2011 when the 15-year FRM average was 4.05 percent.

Additionally, 5-year adjustable-rate mortgage averaged 2.82 percent, the same from the previous week and much lower than this time last year when they averaged 3.69 percent.

"Mortgage rates were nearly unchanged this holiday week in lieu of a mixed bag of economic data reports," said Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist of Freddie Mac.

A recent surge in mortgage applications shows that buyers are continuing to take advantage of low mortgage rates and home prices, while refinancing also remains popular for homeowners.