Here's a question which ought to cause some thought: Why is it -- if we're in the middle of a mortgage meltdown -- that interest rates are both low and falling?

With fewer lenders, fewer loan products and tougher qualification standards you might reasonably expect nervous investors to want higher rates to compensate for more risk. Instead, we're seeing just the opposite.

• Freddie Mac reported that interest levels for 30-year fixed-rate financing dropped to 5.88 percent plus .4 points last week. This rate is not much above the historic levels reached during the summer of 2003 when fixed rates dipped to 5.21 percent with .5 points.

• The one-year LIBOR rate hit 2.51 percent in March, according to HSH.com, a financial publisher. A year ago the index was at 5.32 percent.

• The ever-conservative 11th District Cost of Funds Index is at 3.56 percent -- down from 4.3 percent a year ago.

The declines we're seeing with interest rates appear to make no sense -- unless the supply of mortgage money continues to remain at exceptionally high levels. That's apparently the case, otherwise how else can one explain today's mortgage levels?

For most of us the reason why rates have fallen doesn't actually matter. What does matter is that rates are low relative to both recent levels and historic standards. Whether such bargain-basement interest levels will continue cannot be assured -- and that's reason enough to speak with lenders if you have an interest in financing or refinancing real estate at this time.