AMARILLO, TEXAS — Fixed mortgage rates hit new lows this week, the lowest they’ve been since 1951.

What does that mean for you home buyers and homeowners?

The average interest rate on a 30 year fixed mortgage fell to 4.1 percent, and the average 15 year fixed mortgage fell to 3.28 percent.

Meaning if you were waiting for the right time to buy a home, it’s now.

What is it that caused interest rates to fall to such a record low?

“We have a lot of money flowing into the us but the demand has been soft, and so when you have a big supply of something and the demand is down, then that tends to drop interest rates,” said Jim Rush, First United Bank, Senior Vice President.

Rush says these rates could help not only the real estate market, but the economy, too.

“If you lower your house payments $150 or $200 a month then that gives you $150 or $200 that you can go spend at the theatre or you can go eat at our restaurants or buy clothes and so I think that’s where you’ll see the economy picking up.”

A realtor tells me that market is one thing that could see a gradual boost.

“Interest rates, job creation and home price appreciation, and we have all three of those here in amarillo. we’ve increased jobs about 1,200 for the same time last year, so we have that and we do have a slight home appreciation increase of a little over two percent,” said Coldwell Banker Residential Sales Manager, Jason Woodward.

If you were teetering on refinancing your home, Woodward says now is the time.

“If you haven’t looked at it, now is the time. If you bought your home in 2000 your interest rate was probably around eight percent, so if you refinance now a $200,000 loan, that’s about $480 saving a month.”

Woodward went on to say that right now, Amarillo is performing better than a lot of other cities when it comes to home price appreciation.