Reporting and analysis grouped around #MortgageRates.
The Federal Reserve raised its target range by 25 basis points to 3.75%–4%, a move that affects short-term borrowing conditions while leaving mortgage pricing tied primarily to long-term bond yields.
Changing expectations for borrowing costs are reshaping buyer decisions, seller pricing and construction strategies, leaving local supply and underlying demand as key tests of market resilience.
A rise in unemployment to 4.2% and a 60,000-job downward revision to the two prior months point to a softer labor picture, a shift that could reduce upward pressure on mortgage borrowing costs.
Keller Williams' Jason Abrams says agents should not pause business development while awaiting lower rates, arguing that a slower market requires a different approach to prospecting.
Mortgage applications declined 6% as rates climbed to their highest point in three years, while refinancing demand weakened sharply from both the prior week and the same period a year earlier.
