Mortgage Rate Predictions: Buyers Still Face an Uncertain Housing Market

Mortgage rates can change daily and even hourly. Tharon Green/CNET President Donald Trump's trade war and economic policies continue to ripple through the housing market, with 30-year fixed mortgage rates swinging between 6.5% and 7% in recent weeks. That's muddying the outlook and causing a pullback in homebuying demand. In just one week, the total volume of home loan applications plunged 12.7%, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. "Many potential borrowers will likely stay on the sidelines until they have a better idea of the direction that rates, and the economy, are headed," said MBA President and CEO Bob Broeksmit. Ultimately, the path of mortgage rates over the next few weeks hinges on three things: the administration's tariff agenda, the pace of the Federal Reserve's interest rate cuts and the bond market's response. Mortgage rates, which are linked to 10-year Treasury yields, are highly sensitive to the headlines, inflation and labor data -- and even the president' ... Read full article.