Mortgage rates have dropped under 7% for the first time in four months, offering a sliver of hope for the beleaguered housing market. On a downward trend for seven consecutive weeks, rates have fallen from a high of 7.79% in October, with the average for a 30-year fixed-rate loan falling to 6.95% from 7.03% last week, Freddie Mac said Thursday in a release. The "sharp and surprising decline in mortgage rates could help lift [the housing market] out of its multifaceted chill or deep freeze, given the low level of home sales," Mark Hamrick, senior economic analyst at Bankrate noted in emailed comments. The lower rates "could compel…
