http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n Mortgage Newsletters Archive https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260618 Thu, 18 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT Thu, 18 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260618 Builder sentiment slipped again in June as elevated mortgage rates , higher material costs and ongoing affordability pressures continued to weigh on the housing market. The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) fell two points to 35 , marking the 14th straight month the index has remained below 40. The latest reading underscores how far confidence remains from more durable levels. A streak that long below 40 has not been seen since 2011-2012 , when the market was still dealing with the fallout from the foreclosure crisis. All three major components of the index were either lower or unchanged. Current sales conditions slipped two points to 38 , while sales expectations over the next six months held steady at 45 . Traffic of pr Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260617 Wed, 17 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT Wed, 17 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260617 Mortgage rates quickly erased a week of progress this afternoon following the Fed announcement and press conference. Fed announcement day historically has several components: the announcement itself, the summary of economic projections (SEP), and the press conference.  Within the SEP, there is the dot plot showing each Fed member's assumptions about where the Fed Funds Rate will be in the future if the economy continues on the expected course. "The dots" only come out every other Fed meeting, but they have a habit of causing volatile market reactions. Today's was no exception. The dots essentially show that the average Fed member now sees the Fed Funds rate at least 0.25% higher at the end of 2026 than they did back in March. This is responsible for the first big move in the bond Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260616 Tue, 16 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT Tue, 16 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260616 Today's top tier 30yr fixed rate was 6.54% for the average lender. You'd have to go back to May 14th's reading of 6.52% to see anything lower. The latest improvement follows another moderate drop in oil prices and bond yields as global markets digest the U.S./Iran peace deal. There's still some risk that the deal doesn't happen as is currently expected. If those risks materialize, rates could nudge back up toward recent highs. But if everything goes according to plan (or close to it), the bond market may continue pricing in the expected impact on oil prices. The only warning is that some analysts think oil prices have already gotten ahead of themselves in that regard. If those analysts are right, it could limit any additional momentum toward lower rates until peace is on more solid Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260615 Mon, 15 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT Mon, 15 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260615 The bad news: mortgage rates didn't fall quite as much as one might have expected following the confirmation of the Iran peace deal. The good news: rates had already begun pricing in the peace deal last Thursday and it only took a modest improvement for the average lender to match the lowest level in exactly one month.  For context, today's MND rate index of 6.56% is the same as the most recent low seen on May 29th. Before that, you'd have to go back to 5/15 to see anything lower. For even more context, prior to 5/15, today's rates would have been the 3rd highest since August 1st, 2025.  In other words, we are in solid shape in the context of the last month, but still in an elevated range.  [thirtyyearmortgagerates] Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260612 Fri, 12 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT Fri, 12 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260612 Mortgage applications bounced higher last week after the holiday-shortened period, though the increase largely reflected a normalization in activity rather than a meaningful improvement in underlying demand. The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported a 10.8% increase in total application volume on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ending June 5. The gain was led by refinance activity, which rose 15% from the previous week. Refinance demand was also 20% higher than the same period one year ago, showing that activity remains well ahead of last year’s pace despite continued rate volatility. Purchase demand also moved higher. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 7% week over week and was 4% above year-ago levels. The average 30-year fixed Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260611 Thu, 11 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT Thu, 11 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260611 Mortgage rates began the day in uneventful fashion with the average lender right in line with yesterday's latest levels. Things might have gotten off to a slightly better start, but higher inflation in this morning's econ data and discouraging war-related headlines put upward pressure on bond yields (yields and rates are technically the same thing and they move in the same direction). The bulk of the day remained uneventful but that changed abruptly at 1:30pm when news circulated that Trump cancelled today's planned air strikes and said that both sides had approved final details of a permanent ceasefire, and that a time/place of a deal signing would be announced shortly. Markets reacted swiftly with stocks rallying, oil falling, and rates dropping. Mortgage lenders prefer to set r Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260610 Wed, 10 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT Wed, 10 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260610 There's been remarkably little change in mortgage rates so far this week. Monday saw a modest increase vs Friday, but since then, there's been essentially no change. Today's rates were technically 0.01% lower than yesterday's, but many lenders were perfectly unchanged. This is an acceptable result given the presence of high stakes economic data and ongoing war related headlines. The data in question was the Consumer Price Index (CPI), an inflation report that occasionally causes significant volatility for rates. Today's CPI (for the month of May) came in right in line with expectations, and slightly lower than expected when excluding food and energy prices. It seems to bear repeating that when CPI comes in lower than expected or lower versus the previous month, this rarely means t Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260609 Tue, 09 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT Tue, 09 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260609 Mortgage rates put an end to the most recent spike that followed last Friday's jobs report. Most of the upward movement happened on Friday, but yesterday offered a modest aftershock. Those two days brought the top tier 30yr fixed rate up to 6.68 from 6.58 on Thursday. Today's average remained perfectly flat at 6.68%. War-related headlines had periodic impacts on both oil prices and the bond/rate market. The scariest moment of the day for rates followed a headline that Iran had shot down a U.S. helicopter. Trump posted that the U.S. must respond to that attack, but subsequent comments minimized the initial sense of urgency. Oil prices definitely bounced higher on the news, but bonds/rates were able to hold their ground without forcing mortgage lenders to raise rates in the afternoon. Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260608 Mon, 08 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT Mon, 08 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260608 The average top-tier 30yr fixed mortgage rate rose 0.08% last Friday after the jobs report came in much stronger than expected. Today added another 0.02% of upward movement. Today's level of 6.68% is the 3rd highest of the past 9 months. Unlike Friday, there were no big-ticket economic reports driving volatility in rate markets. The only arguable cause and effect was seen earlier in the morning surrounding war-related headlines. These actually helped rates start the day lower than they otherwise would have. As the week continues, investors will remain tuned in to war-related developments as well as an important inflation report on Wednesday morning (the Consumer Price Index or "CPI"). Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260605 Fri, 05 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT Fri, 05 Jun 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260605 Mortgage applications eased again last week even as borrowing costs moved lower, suggesting that modest rate relief was not enough to bring borrowers back in force. The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported a 2.5% decrease in total application volume on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ending May 29. The decline was led by refinance activity, which slipped 2% from the previous week. Refinance demand remained 20% higher than the same period one year ago, however, underscoring that activity is still running above 2025’s pace even as it softens week to week. Purchase demand also pulled back, though the move was more modest. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index fell 3% week over week and was still 7% above year-ago levels. The average 30-year fixed mortgage Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter