The average long-term mortgage rate in the US increased again this week, coinciding with the latest official data showing that inflation has not abated. This indicates that the Federal Reserve will almost certainly increase its benchmark borrowing rate once more soon.
Washington, D.C. This week saw an increase in average long-term mortgage rates in the United States, which coincided with the latest official data showing that inflation has not abated. This suggests that the Federal Reserve will almost certainly increase its benchmark borrowing rate later this month.
According to Freddie Mac, a company that purchases mortgages, the 30-year rate increased to 5.51% from 5.30% last week. The 30-year average rate was 2.88% a year ago.
The typical rate on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, which are popular among home refinancers, increased from 4.45% last week to 4.67% this week. The rate was 2.22% a year ago.
The largest single increase since 1994 was made by the Federal Reserve, which increased its benchmark rate by half a point in May and other three-quarters of a percent last month. The Fed’s policymakers have hinted that considerably higher interest rates may be required to control the inflation that has been persistently high for four decades. When the Federal Reserve meets later this month, the majority of experts predict that it will increase its borrowing rate by another half to three-quarters of a point.
Fed officials acknowledged that their rate rises might hurt the economy, but they said that these measures were required to bring price increases back in line with the Fed’s target range of 2% annually.
According to a study released on Wednesday by the Labor Department, the consumer price index increased by 9.1% last year, which is the highest annual gain since 1981. Labor’s producer pricing index, which gauges inflation before it reaches consumers, increased by 11.3% in June compared to a year earlier, according to data released on Thursday.
The benchmark short-term rate set by the Fed, which affects many consumer and corporate loans, will now be in the 1.5% to 1.75% range, and Fed members anticipate that range to double by the end of the year.
Higher borrowing costs have put off prospective homebuyers and chilled the once-hot housing industry, one of the most significant economic sectors. May saw a fourth straight month of slowing sales of previously occupied homes in the United States.
Even as sales decreased in May, home values continued to rise. According to NAR data going back to 1999, the national median home price increased 14.8% from a year earlier to $407,600 in May, reaching an all-time high.
The Mortgage Bankers Association stated this week that mortgage applications are down 14% from last year and refinancings are down 80%. With additional Fed rate rises almost certainly coming, those numbers may decline even further.
Layoffs have already started in the finance and housing industries. The online mortgage provider loanDepot said on Tuesday that it was eliminating 2,000 jobs.
Redfin, an online real estate brokerage, announced last month that it was cutting off 8% of its staff, and Compass announced that it was letting go of 450 personnel.
JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the country by assets, is dismissing hundreds of workers from its mortgage division and reassigning hundreds more others to positions around the company.
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