The mortgage market experienced a tumultuous week primarily due to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's comments. Powell cautioned in his semi-annual testimony to Congress that monetary policy might be tighter than expected to combat inflation. He suggested that if the economic data is stronger than anticipated, the federal funds rate may need to remain high for longer than anticipated, and future rate hikes could be 50 basis points instead of 25.
Despite investors increasing their outlook for the terminal federal funds rate and the length of time at that level, mortgage rates only slightly increased. The ISM Services Index released this week demonstrated that the services sector is growing despite tighter Fed policy, and JOLTS reported that the labor market remains tight with a high number of job openings and employees willingly leaving their jobs.
This graphic provides you with a good overall picture of where mortgage interest rates are below. These are just averages for informational purposes only. It is important to work with your own reputable lender in order to find the best program available for your specific situation.
