Mortgage Rates at Lowest Since April
This year started out strong and, despite an exceptionally strong jobs report, the trend for mortgage rates has remained favorable. In fact, rates have been plummeting at their quickest pace recently, to the point where most brokers are offering quotes that are approaching seven month lows.
Current downward movement can be attributed to the heavy losses being seen in stocks and oil prices. Investors are currently reacting to the higher risks associated with these assets by taking money out of them. When this happens, they are generally putting their money into the relatively safer bond markets, which results in a dip in mortgage rates.
The big question to ask right now is whether we can expect stocks to bounce back soon, sending mortgage rates up again, or if this is the beginning of an even bigger sell-off, like the ones we saw following the peaks in 2000 and 2007. Since this is difficult to predict, it make it hard to decide whether to float or lock. However, with rates where they are, it’s hard to argue that it’s a good time to be in the market.
