Average mortgage rates held steady yesterday. Phew! Last week was the equal-worst week for those rates for decades, according to Mortgage News Daily’s archives. So yesterday came as a big relief.
And there more be more good news. Looking at markets this morning, mortgage rates today might hold steady again or fall modestly. But these are turbulent times and that could change as the day progresses.
Don't lock on a day when mortgage rates look set to fall. My recommendations (below) are intended to give longer-term suggestions about the overall direction of those rates. So, they don’t change daily to reflect fleeting sentiments in volatile markets.
Might yesterday’s holding steady suggest that mortgage rates have reached their ceiling? Maybe. But we’ve been here several times this year. And, on each occasion, those rates have merely paused before heading on upward. And, even if we are in for an easier time with the possibility of falls, I doubt rates will decrease much for long.
So, with little prospect of significant and sustained falls anytime soon, my personal rate lock recommendations for the longer term remain:
>Related: 7 Tips to get the best refinance rate
Here’s a snapshot of the state of play this morning at about 9:50 a.m. (ET). The data, compared with roughly the same time yesterday, were:
*A movement of less than $20 on gold prices or 40 cents on oil ones is a change of 1% or less. So we only count meaningful differences as good or bad for mortgage rates.
Before the pandemic and the Federal Reserve’s interventions in the mortgage market, you could look at the above figures and make a pretty good guess about what would happen to mortgage rates that day. But that’s no longer the case. We still make daily calls. And are usually right. But our record for accuracy won’t achieve its former high levels until things settle down.
So use markets only as a rough guide. Because they have to be exceptionally strong or weak to rely on them. But, with that caveat, mortgage rates today might hold steady or fall a little. However, be aware that “intraday swings” (when rates change direction during the day) are a common feature right now.
Here are some things you need to know:
A lot is going on at the moment. And nobody can claim to know with certainty what will happen to mortgage rates in coming hours, days, weeks or months.
Well, mortgage rates held steady yesterday. So they were neither rising nor falling. But that was just one day.
Go back any further, and they’ve been rising for six months. And, unfortunately, the rises have been getting worse. Last week and this quarter have both seen the sharpest rate increases for their respective periods in decades. So mortgage and refinance rates have definitely been rising.
This can’t go on forever, even if it feels like it already has. But I suspect any falls over the coming months will regain only a tiny fraction of the ground lost to rises. And I think, overall, we’ll probably see further — but more gentle — rises, at least until the end of this year.
Of course, there will be days and more extended periods of falls during that time. But I reckon the underlying trend will likely continue to be upward.
Read the weekend edition of this daily article for more background.
Over much of 2020, the overall trend for mortgage rates was clearly downward. And a new, weekly all-time low was set on 16 occasions that year, according to Freddie Mac.
The most recent weekly record low occurred on Jan. 7, 2021, when it stood at 2.65% for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages.
Since then, the picture has been mixed with extended periods of rises and falls. Unfortunately, the rises have grown more pronounced since last September.
Freddie’s Mar. 24 report puts that weekly average for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages at 4.42% (with 0.8 fees and points), up from the previous week’s 4.16%.
Note that Freddie expects you to buy discount points (“with 0.8 fees and points”) on closing that earn you a lower rate. If you don’t do that, your rate would be closer to the ones we and others quote.
Looking further ahead, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) each has a team of economists dedicated to monitoring and forecasting what will happen to the economy, the housing sector and mortgage rates.
And here are their current rate forecasts for the four quarters of 2022 (Q1/22, Q2/22, Q3/22, Q4/22).
The numbers in the table below are for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages. Fannie’s were published on Mar. 17 and the MBA’s on Mar. 22. But Freddie now publishes these forecasts every quarter, most recently on Jan. 21. So its figures are already looking very stale.
Of course, given so many unknowables, the whole current crop of forecasts might be even more speculative than usual. I’m afraid I’m less optimistic than any of them.
You should comparison shop widely, no matter what sort of mortgage you want. As federal regulator the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says:
“Shopping around for your mortgage has the potential to lead to real savings. It may not sound like much, but saving even a quarter of a point in interest on your mortgage saves you thousands of dollars over the life of your loan.”
Mortgage rate methodology
The Mortgage Reports receives rates based on selected criteria from multiple lending partners each day. We arrive at an average rate and APR for each loan type to display in our chart. Because we average an array of rates, it gives you a better idea of what you might find in the marketplace. Furthermore, we average rates for the same loan types. For example, FHA fixed with FHA fixed. The end result is a good snapshot of daily rates and how they change over time.
The information contained on The Mortgage Reports website is for informational purposes only and is not an advertisement for products offered by Full Beaker. The views and opinions expressed herein are those of the author and do not reflect the policy or position of Full Beaker, its officers, parent, or affiliates.
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