Mortgage Rates Sideways at Long-Term Highs; Freddie Cites Market Improvements; Pending Sales Decline

Mortgage Rates Sideways at Long-Term Highs; Freddie Cites Market Improvements; Pending Sales Decline

Mortgage rates managed to hold steady today after moving up to the highest levels in more than 5 months yesterday. Rates had moved close to current levels even before the Fed rate hike earlier this month. Since then, they've been sideways overall, with a good balance between better and worse days. Yesterday's move higher finally upset that balance. For the first time since late November, rates are starting to look more predisposed to moving higher . There is a major caveat though. Mortgage rates are driven by the prices of mortgage-backed-securities (MBS), which are part of the broader bond market. Given the fact that bond markets often experience serendipitous volatility at the end of the year, we could take any end-of-year move with a grain of salt. That doesn't mean rates will necessarily