Mortgage Rates

Optimal Blue’s Mike Vough on borrowers staying rate anchored into 2026

Borrowers are still anchored to ultra-low, pandemic-era mortgage rates, a mindset that is influencing both purchase and refinance trends as the market heads into 2026. That’s according to Mike Vough, Optimal Blue‘s senior vice president of corporate strategy, who highlighted the company’s latest Market Advantage report in a conversation this week with HousingWire at the […]

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NAREB president calls for ‘optimistic underwriting’ to expand homeownership

Ashley Thomas III has assumed the presidency of the National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB) — the nation’s oldest and largest Black real estate organization — with an agenda focused on expanding homeownership access. Thomas, a housing policy and wealth equity strategist with more than 25 years of experience across real estate, lending and

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Inflation drives mortgage rates to 2026 high point

Yields on the 10-year Treasury, after a brief dip at the start of the week, returned to the upper 4.2% range, even briefly breaking 4.3%, in reaction to inflationary pressures from the Iran conflict. Processing Content In turn, this led mortgage rates to increase by 11 basis points for the second consecutive week, the Freddie

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Fed holds rates, officials signal wait and see on inflation risks

In a widely expected move, the Federal Reserve held its benchmark interest rate steady Wednesday at a target range of 3.5% to 3.75%, the same level it set in January. “Available indicators suggest that economic activity has been expanding at a solid pace. Job gains have remained low, and the unemployment rate has been little

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The best week to sell your home in 2026

The housing market is quickly approaching the spring buying season, with the best time to sell in 2026 less than a month away. Processing Content The week of April 12-18 is expected to be the ideal time to list a home this year, as typical market seasonality and improving affordability conditions at this point in

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Mortgage rates hit highest this year, slowing refinancing

US mortgage rates jumped last week to the highest level of the year, leading to a sharp pullback in refinancing activity. Processing Content The contract rate on a 30-year mortgage rose 11 basis points to 6.30% in the week ended March 13 following a similar advance at the week before, according to Mortgage Bankers Association

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Older Americans maintain record share of housing wealth

Older Americans now hold as much real estate wealth as middle-aged homeowners, illustrating the widening gaps in homeownership access and long-term home price gains. An analysis from Redfin, based on data from the Federal Reserve Board, found that Americans ages 70 and older controlled roughly 26% of the nation’s $48 trillion in real estate wealth

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Housing demand still positive, but for how long with rising rates?

Lower mortgage rates and less volatility have been one of the key positive stories in 2026 for the housing market. Until last week, rates were under 6.25% all year and we didn’t see much volatility, which is a key variable for a healthy housing market. However, a lot of that changed last week as the

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Opendoor’s cheap mortgage rates spark sustainability debate

iBuyer Opendoor’s recently launched mortgage product — which promises below-market interest rates after the company removed its markup — has sparked debate across the industry about who absorbs the cost and whether the model is sustainable. Some industry professionals view the offering as similar to the strategy many homebuilders use — providing below-market mortgage rates

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