Mortgage Rates

Sharp decline in mortgage rates revives hopes of a refi surge, LOs say

Mortgage rates briefly fell below 6% on Friday for the first time in nearly three years — driven by President Donald Trump’s proposed $200 billion push in the secondary market. If they stay that low, they are expected to spur refinance activity.  Historically, a 22–basis-point decline in the 30-year fixed mortgage rate, such as the […]

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Mortgage rates drop below 6% following Trump’s MBS announcement

It finally happened today: We got mortgage rates under 6% for a short time. Can we get some traction for that level? Well, one aspect of the mortgage-rate story really improved today; we had a monster day in mortgage spreads, improving overnight to push rates down over 20 basis points without much help from the

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Trump directs GSEs to purchase $200B in mortgage bonds in 2025

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac quietly increased their purchases of mortgage-backed securities (MBS) in 2025, helping push mortgage spreads lower toward the year’s end. Most analysts, however, were not expecting further meaningful tightening in the near term — at least until this week. That changed Thursday after President Donald Trump posted on social media that

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Trump’s $200B MBS idea tightens spreads, raises doubts

If it comes to fruition, President Trump’s call for a $200 billion purchase of mortgage-backed securities could further tighten MBS spreads in the near term. But with few details available, many market participants are skeptical about the longer-term impact. Processing Content In response to the president directing his representatives to purchase an equal amount of

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Trump directs GSEs to buy $200B in MBS to push mortgage rates lower

President Donald Trump said Thursday that he is directing representatives at the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) to purchase $200 billion in mortgage-backed securities (MBS), a move he said is intended to bring mortgage rates down. “Because I chose not to sell Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in my First Term, a truly great decision, and against

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Expert Forecasts Point to Affordability Improving in 2026

Expert Forecasts Point to Affordability Improving in 2026

Wondering what to expect from the housing market in 2026? You’re not the only one. For the past few years, affordability has been the biggest barrier standing between most people and their next move. And a lot of buyers and sellers have been holding their breath waiting for things to get better. The good news?

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Conforming mortgage rates should remain around 6% in 2026

Mortgage rates are starting 2026 marginally higher, according to Freddie Mac, with many observers expecting them to approach and possibly even move below the 6% barrier. Processing Content “In the first full week of the new year, mortgage rates remained within a narrow range, hovering close to the 6% mark,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s

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US mortgage rates fall to 6.25%, lowest since September 2024

US mortgage rates fell last week to the lowest level since September 2024, a hopeful sign for the sluggish housing market to start the new year. Processing Content The contract rate on a 30-year mortgage dropped 7 basis points to 6.25% in the week ended Jan. 2, which included New Year’s Day, according to Mortgage

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Why 2026 might finally be the year homeowners let go of their 2–3 percent rates

For the last few years, many homeowners have felt like they were holding a winning hand, a two to three percent mortgage rate that seemed too good to ever give up. And honestly, who could blame them? Those rates were historic. The average 30 year fixed mortgage rate fell below 3 percent in 2020 and

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Banks snatch up MBS that notched best returns since 2002

Flush with deposits, U.S. banks are buying up mortgage bonds and betting that the asset class will get a further boost in 2026 from relaxed capital rules.Late last year, commercial bank holdings of mortgage paper reached the highest level since 2023, and stood at more than $2.7 trillion toward the end of December, according to

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