It was a fairly quiet day for mortgage rates for the average lender — at least until the end of the business day. Mortgage lenders prefer to set rates once a day, in the morning. Since bond prices are ultimately determined by bond prices, if bonds move enough during the day, lenders can “re-price” to follow the market. In today’s case things have deteriorated enough by the past hour that many lenders have re-priced for the worse. This wasn’t a huge change in rates in relation to the average mortgage borrower, but it does leave the average lender in line with the highest rates in nearly two weeks. Fortunately, the past two weeks have been fairly flat for interest rates as the market prepares to hear whatever the Federal Reserve has to say on Wednesday. The headlines will probably focus on a “rate hike” by the Fed, but that part will be old news for some time. The really important information will be gleaned from Fed Chair Powell’s press conference. This can set the tone for a larger phase of momentum, for better or worse.
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