Mortgage rates were arguably flat today for the average lender although a few were slightly higher or lower depending on their offerings from yesterday. Markets, however, argued a slightly different case. When we talk about "the market" with respect to mortgage rates, it's not quite the same as almost every other mention of "the market." In rates' case, it's the BOND market that matters. Indeed, bond prices and yields (another word for "rates") have a bigger impact on mortgage rates than any other variable. Part of the reason for the discrepancy between bonds and mortgage rates today was timin... (read more)