Mortgage rates managed to maintain the improvement seen since Wednesday's Fed announcement.  While the Fed did indeed hike its policy rate, the hike was widely expected and had already been accounted for in longer-term bond markets (like those that dictate mortgage rates).  The easiest way to understand this is to consider that most bond market securities (like Treasuries and Mortgage-Backed-Securities) can move/change every millisecond of every business day.  

Mortgage rates were steady-to-slightly lower today, keeping them in line with the lowest levels in 2 weeks and very close to the lowest levels of the month.  For most lenders, that means conventional 30yr fixed rate quotes of 4.25% on top tier scenarios.  Some lenders are still up at 4.375% and an aggressive few are back down to 4.125%.

Mortgage rates continued lower today as political uncertainty sparked the biggest day of stock market losses since the election.   In general, short term pain for stocks benefits bonds.  When demand for bonds increases, rates move lower.  Today was no exception.  Bond yields (which correlate with mortgage rates) fell in lock-step with stocks in the late morning hours.

Mortgage rates were lower for the 7th day in a row today, further extending their push into the lowest levels of the month.  At first, that positive movement was driven by relief that the Fed's rate hike outlook didn't accelerate as much as investors expected.  That motivation ran its course by the end of last week.  Since then, political uncertainty has been a hot button, with widespread doubt surrounding the new administration's ability to pass the new health care bill.

Mortgage rates were slightly higher for the first time in 8 days as markets braced for the impact of political developments.  The big issue of the day was (and still is) the healthcare bill set to be debated in the House of Representatives tonight.  

In general, if the bill is passed, investors will be more keen to believe in the viability of other legislation more germane to financial markets (like tax cuts, other stimulus, and regulatory reform).  Those "other" policy points were key reasons for the sharp move higher in rates at the end of 2016.  If confidence increases, it could put the same pressure back on rates.  But if investors lose confidence in the policy potential, stocks and bonds would have more motivation to move lower (as they've both been doing for the past 2 weeks).

While some lenders were slightly better or worse versus yesterday, mortgage rates were unchanged on average today.  This isn't much of surprise considering yesterday's much-anticipated healthcare vote never happened.  It's rumored to occur this afternoon, but markets won't have much time to react before closing for the weekend.  If you need to get caught up with the healtchare news and the mortgage rate implications, check out yesterday's article.

The bottom line of all this political drama is that it's not about healthcare!