Mortgage Rates Higher This Week, But Stabilized Today

Mortgage rates stabilized today after moving higher at a moderately quick pace over the past 2 days.  To be sure, today’s rates are definitely higher than those seen at the end of last week, despite numerous headlines to the contrary. The headlines in question are based on Freddie Mac’s weekly rate survey which is published on Thursday morning, but tends to capture week-over-week rate movement between Monday and the previous Monday.  That ended up being a very favorable comparison this time around.  The rising rates of the past 2 days conclusively changed the game.

Why are rates rising though?  Rates are dictated by the bond market.  As bond prices fall, yields rise, and higher yields coincide with higher rates (indeed, “yield” is simply market jargon for “rate”).