Fed will keep buying $40 billion in mortgages every month

As Fed’s balance sheet approaches $8 trillion, policymakers say path of the economy continues to depend on the course of the pandemic. Continue reading

If home prices don’t cool, watch for Fed tightening and rising mortgage rates

Economists at Fannie Mae are again sounding warnings that rising rents and record home price appreciation could contribute to long-lasting inflation that leads to earlier, more aggressive tightening by the Federal Reserve. Continue reading

What on earth is going on with lumber prices?

Even though lumber prices have ticked down a bit recently, they’re still drastically up from where they were last year. So, what’s happening? Here’s a breakdown. Continue reading

Rising home prices may be crimping demand for purchase mortgages

Demand for purchase mortgages fell last week to the lowest level since May 2020, which could be a sign first-time homebuyers are getting squeezed out of the market. Continue reading

Mortgage rates retreat from 3% threshold

Mortgage rates retreated this week, even as support builds at the Federal Reserve to begin discussions on when to taper bond purchases that have kept a lid on long-term interest rates. Continue reading

Inflation concerns not reflected in latest mortgage rate survey

A weekly mortgage rate survey from Freddie Mac shows rates continuing to slide, but the snapshot of average rates over a seven-day period doesn’t fully reflect new data that’s pushed rates up this week on renewed worries about inflation. Continue reading