Daily Mortgage Rate Commentary Archive

Today, 9:36 PM

Mortgage Rates Unimpacted by New Executive Orders - Today, 9:36 PM

Mortgage rates are driven predominantly by the bond market and bonds were able to clear up a few curiosities on inauguration day. Specifically, traders expected multiple executive orders w...

Fri, January 17, 9:19 PM

Uneventful Day For Mortgage Rates - Fri, January 17, 9:19 PM

Mortgage rates are driven by the bond market and Friday was the least active day of the week for bonds. There were no major economic reports to cause rapid changes in trading levels. As su...

Thu, January 16, 9:01 PM

Mortgage Rates Back Down to Lowest Levels in 2 Weeks - Thu, January 16, 9:01 PM

After having a great day yesterday, mortgage rates were able to add another "good" day today. The net effect brings the average lender's top tier 30yr fixed rate back down to levels last ...

Wed, January 15, 9:08 PM

Mortgage Rates Drop Back to Last Week's Levels After Softer Inflation Data - Wed, January 15, 9:08 PM

We knew that today's Consumer Price Index (CPI) was a hotly anticipated economic report that at least had the potential to give rates a big push, and it didn't disappoint. Any time we're dealin...

Tue, January 14, 9:26 PM

Mortgage Rates Make a Modest Recovery Ahead of Important Inflation Data - Tue, January 14, 9:26 PM

Mortgage rates officially hit the highest levels since May 2024 yesterday, even though the average was almost imperceptibly higher than last Friday's. We saw a similarly small move today, ...

Mon, January 13, 9:15 PM

Mortgage Rates Slightly Higher to Start New Week - Mon, January 13, 9:15 PM

Mortgage rates rose to the highest levels since May 2024 by the end of last week following a stronger reading on the jobs report. Technically, the same thing happened today, but only because rat...

Fri, January 10, 8:57 PM

Mortgage Rates Jump Sharply Higher After Jobs Report - Fri, January 10, 8:57 PM

Mortgage rates were already at 6 month highs earlier this week so it didn't take much of a push to send them up to new 7 month highs today. The push in question came from today's hotly-anticipa...

Thu, January 9, 6:47 PM

Mortgage Rates Just a Hair Lower. Friday Could be Much More Volatile - Thu, January 9, 6:47 PM

Mortgage rates are driven by movement in the bond market and bonds were on a shortened schedule today due to the federal day of mourning for Jimmy Carter. As such, volume and volatility we...

Wed, January 8, 7:54 PM

Highest Mortgage Rates Since June - Wed, January 8, 7:54 PM

For the second day in a row, mortgage rates have moved higher at a modest to moderate pace. Unfortunately, that's been a trend so far in 2025 and it's compounded by the fact that rates were alr...

Tue, January 7, 8:36 PM

Mortgage Rates Rise to Match 6 Month Highs - Tue, January 7, 8:36 PM

We came into the current week knowing that rates would take cues from any clear cues in this week's economic data. In general, that means higher rates in response to stronger data or lower ...

Mon, January 6, 8:25 PM

Mortgage Rates Barely Budge to Start New Week - Mon, January 6, 8:25 PM

The bond market and interest rates have arrived at the first full week of the new year almost exactly where they left off before the X-mas/New Year holiday weeks. There was a small amount...

Fri, January 3, 9:33 PM

Mortgage Rates Slightly Higher Today, But Generally Flat Over Past 2 Weeks - Fri, January 3, 9:33 PM

The official holiday dates may be in the rearview, but as far as interest rates and underlying bond markets are concerned, this was the last day of the winter holiday season. The same log...

Thu, January 2, 9:40 PM

Mortgage Rates Haven't Moved Much Since Fed Week - Thu, January 2, 9:40 PM

The last time mortgage rates were moving with any sense of urgency was in the days surround the Fed's rate cut on December 18th. Incidentally, that movement was sharply higher, which is just as...

Tue, December 31, 6:39 PM

Mortgage Rates Slightly Higher as Markets Close Early - Tue, December 31, 6:39 PM

Major holidays typically involve a full day market closure along with an "early close" on an adjacent day. This matters to rates because mortgage lenders decide what they can offer based on...

Mon, December 30, 8:31 PM

Mortgage Rates Modestly Lower to Begin Another Holiday-Shortened Week - Mon, December 30, 8:31 PM

Because mortgage rates are determined by trading levels in the bond market, when the market is closed, lenders don't update their rate offerings. As such, there were no rate updates last ...

Fri, December 27, 9:16 PM

Mortgage Rates Little Changed Today, This Year, And Over The Past 2 Years - Fri, December 27, 9:16 PM

Mortgage rates didn't move much today, and markets have been very quiet due to the holiday week. So we'll take a quick moment for a retrospective. In September 2022, 30yr fixed mortgage ...

Thu, December 26, 8:51 PM

Mortgage Rates Start Higher, But Recover in Afternoon - Thu, December 26, 8:51 PM

Mortgage rates are based on trading levels in the bond market and bond market activity has been extremely slow, as is normally the case during the Christmas holiday week. The side effect o...

Mon, December 23, 8:36 PM

Mortgage Rates Higher to Start Holiday-Shortened Week - Mon, December 23, 8:36 PM

Holidays have inconsistent impacts on mortgage rates because holiday's have inconsistent impacts on the bond market (and rates are dictated by the bond market). Bond traders (the people buying ...

Fri, December 20, 9:11 PM

Mortgage Rates Recover Some of The Lost Ground - Fri, December 20, 9:11 PM

The week's big story is still the big jump in rates that took place after Wednesday's Fed announcement. And while rates remain noticeably elevated on the week due to that jump, they're set ...

Thu, December 19, 8:50 PM

If You're Struggling to Understand This Week's Mortgage Rate Spike, This is For You - Thu, December 19, 8:50 PM

We received some anonymous feedback regarding recent rate commentary that serves as a good reminder that not everyone may be picking up what we're putting down, or worse yet, picking up things th...

Wed, December 18, 9:19 PM

Mortgage Rates Jump Abruptly Higher After The Fed's Rate Cut - Wed, December 18, 9:19 PM

If anyone needed any further convincing that a Fed rate cut is no guarantee of lower mortgage rates , today is a great piece of evidence. Perhaps "great" is the wrong word. There was...

Tue, December 17, 8:36 PM

Mortgage Rates Effectively Unchanged Ahead of Fed Announcement - Tue, December 17, 8:36 PM

Mortgage rates have been having a much calmer week compared to last week. Monday brought a modest decline versus last Friday and today's rates are effectively unchanged. While the ...

Mon, December 16, 8:56 PM

Mortgage Rates Start New Week With Some Hope - Mon, December 16, 8:56 PM

Last week wasn't great for mortgage rates . They moved higher on each of the 5 days. Moreover, there was a distinct lack of logical motivation from the economic data. In fact, ...

Fri, December 13, 8:13 PM

Mortgage Rates Rise For 5th Straight Day - Fri, December 13, 8:13 PM

There's no easy way to say it: it was a bad week for mortgage rates . Actually, it was a bad week for interest rates in general and mortgage rates typically follow the rest of the rate m...

Thu, December 12, 9:08 PM

Mortgage Rates Back to Highest Levels in a Week - Thu, December 12, 9:08 PM

It's been a bummer of a week for mortgage rates with modest to moderate increases every day so far. Adding insult to injury is the fact that there hasn't been any compelling reason for th...

Wed, December 11, 8:32 PM

Mortgage Rates Started Lower, But Ended Higher - Wed, December 11, 8:32 PM

Mortgage rates were having a pretty decent day at first. The bond market was only slightly weaker overnight (implies some upward pressure on rates), but quickly improved after the Consumer...

Tue, December 10, 8:34 PM

Mortgage Rates Moving Back Up - Tue, December 10, 8:34 PM

Between November 18th and December 6th, the average top tier 30yr fixed mortgage rate moved down from 7.08 to 6.68. A 0.40% drop is rather significant, especially over the course of only 3 ...

Mon, December 9, 9:26 PM

Mortgage Rates Slightly Higher to Start New Week - Mon, December 9, 9:26 PM

Mortgage rates ended last week with an impressive drop to the lowest levels in more than a month and a half. Today's rates ended up being the 2nd lowest over that time after the average le...

Fri, December 6, 9:29 PM

Mortgage Rates Fall More Than Expected After Jobs Report - Fri, December 6, 9:29 PM

As of last week, rates were showing some signs of resilience, but they had to wait for the true test from this week's jobs report. Spoiler alert: they passed the test. It wasn't that the h...

Thu, December 5, 8:58 PM

Mortgage Rates Little Changed Ahead of Big Jobs Report - Thu, December 5, 8:58 PM

It's been a remarkably calm week for mortgage rates , and a fairly decent one relative to several recent examples. The average top tier 30yr fixed rate hovered just over 7% for most of Nov...

Wed, December 4, 9:23 PM

Mortgage Rates Start Higher, But End Lower - Wed, December 4, 9:23 PM

Mortgage lenders generally try to avoid setting rates more than once per day, but they will make changes if the underlying bond market is moving enough. Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS) are...

Tue, December 3, 8:30 PM

Mortgage Rates Lower on Average, But Timing Matters - Tue, December 3, 8:30 PM

The bond market is the primary driver of mortgage rate movement and normally, "weakness" equates to higher rates. Bonds are slightly weaker today compared to yesterday afternoon, but mortg...

Mon, December 2, 9:34 PM

Mortgage Rates Little-Changed After Last Week's Improvement - Mon, December 2, 9:34 PM

Mortgage rates remain elevated relative to the levels seen in September and early October, but they've definitely moved down a bit from their recent highs. Thanksgiving week saw the lowest...

Wed, November 27, 7:53 PM

Lowest Mortgage Rates in a Month - Wed, November 27, 7:53 PM

The interest rate market continues the healing process after taking heavy damage in October. During the course of that month, the average top tier conventional 30yr fixed rate increased mor...

Tue, November 26, 7:12 PM

Mortgage Rates Steady to Slightly Higher - Tue, November 26, 7:12 PM

Although there was a busier calendar of economic data today, mortgage rates are little changed after dropping at the fastest pace in several weeks to start the new week. Economic data is one of...

Mon, November 25, 8:32 PM

Mortgage Rates Near Lowest Levels in a Month - Mon, November 25, 8:32 PM

Last Monday, mortgage rates were near the highest levels in more than 3 months. A week later, and the average lender is right in line with the lowest levels in more than a month. Th...

Fri, November 22, 8:01 PM

A Refreshingly Boring Week For Mortgage Rates - Fri, November 22, 8:01 PM

Starting in early October, mortgage rates experienced significant volatility, meaning the average day over day change was much bigger than normal. While the term "volatility" technically ...

Thu, November 21, 9:26 PM

Calmer Trend Continues For Mortgage Rates - Thu, November 21, 9:26 PM

They may not be low. In fact, they may still be a lot higher than you want, but at least they haven't been too volatility this week. For the 7th day in a row, the top tier, convention...

Wed, November 20, 9:22 PM

Mortgage Rates Have Been Much Calmer, But They're Still High - Wed, November 20, 9:22 PM

Remember October and the first part of November--not because of the election, but rather because of the relentless rise in mortgage rates ? Would you rather forget? You're not alone....

Tue, November 19, 9:27 PM

Mortgage Rates Only Modestly Lower Despite Seemingly Big News - Tue, November 19, 9:27 PM

Ask your favorite curmudgeonly old market watcher and they'll be happy to explain what "always" happens in financial markets when there's breaking news regarding large scale geopolitical risk.&nb...

Mon, November 18, 9:01 PM

Mortgage Rates Didn't Move Much Over The Weekend - Mon, November 18, 9:01 PM

The average top tier conventional 30yr fixed rate was just a hair over 7% on Friday afternoon and the same is true at the start of the new week. Rates are based on bonds, but while bonds mo...

Fri, November 15, 7:54 PM

Mortgage Rates End Higher, But Not As High as This Morning - Fri, November 15, 7:54 PM

This afternoon's mortgage rates are higher than yesterday's latest levels. That's a result of bond market weakness seen late yesterday and earlier this morning. Why would yesterday'...

Thu, November 14, 9:15 PM

Mortgage Rates Roughly Unchanged Yet Again Despite Bond Market Losses - Thu, November 14, 9:15 PM

Losses... weakness... selling pressure... When any of these things happen in the bond market, it puts upward pressure on interest rates . Mortgage rates are primarily determined by...

Wed, November 13, 8:28 PM

Mortgage Rates Roughly Unchanged Today - Wed, November 13, 8:28 PM

While there's been plenty of movement in the average mortgage rate on any given day recently, today was not one of them. 30yr fixed rates remained above 7%, but technically fell 0.01% (an a...

Tue, November 12, 8:35 PM

Mortgage Rates Jump Back Above 7% - Tue, November 12, 8:35 PM

Last Thursday and Friday offered some hope that the persistent move to higher rates was finally leveling off. It wasn't necessarily a rational hope, but if nothing else, it was "nice" to se...

Fri, November 8, 10:22 PM

Mortgage Rates Lower Again As Lenders Catch Up With Bonds - Fri, November 8, 10:22 PM

The bond market dictates day to day movement for all manner of interest rates , including mortgages. On election night, bond yields (another word for "rates") spiked as soon as traders fel...

Thu, November 7, 9:33 PM

Tricky Day... Mortgage Rates Fall Significantly, But Not Because of The Fed - Thu, November 7, 9:33 PM

There's a distinct risk that, even in the financial community, that people will look back on today's drop in interest rates and conclude it must have something to do with the Federal Reserve's ...

Wed, November 6, 8:03 PM

Please Forget Everything You Think You Know About Fed Rate Cuts - Wed, November 6, 8:03 PM

Mortgage rates spent the entire month of October moving higher at a fairly quick pace. Some of that had to do with stronger economic data, but at least as much had to do with the bond mark...

Tue, November 5, 9:00 PM

Mortgage Rates Start Higher, But Fall in Afternoon - Tue, November 5, 9:00 PM

More often than not, mortgage lenders only set rates once a day. Their decisions are based on trading levels in the underlying bond market. Even though bonds are constantly moving, it doesn...

Mon, November 4, 8:16 PM

Mortgage Rates Start Week Slightly Lower as Election Volatility Works Both Ways - Mon, November 4, 8:16 PM

Love it or hate it, election-related volatility has been having a big impact on the bond market and, thus, mortgage rates . Most of the volatility has resulted in higher rates, but there w...