Uneventful Start This Week as Rates Flirt With 5%

Last week's big news was the rapid jump in rates.  In fact, it was right in line with the worst week in decades in terms of the total increase in the average 30yr fixed rate.  On that note, June 17-21, 2013 saw rates rise 0.52% compared to last week's 0.49%.  Because rates are quoted in 0.125% increments, this would be a hit of 0.50% to prospective borrowers in either case.  

Once we move beyond the 1-week time frame, the summer of 2013 no longer remotely compares the the past few months.  With that in mind, today was a refreshing start to the new week.  The bond market held its ground nicely and even managed to improve slightly in the afternoon.  While this isn't the first time we've seen such things in 2022, it's one of only 3 days of improvement since March 4th.  

Mortgage rates didn't have much of a chance to respond as the bond gains weren't well established early enough in the day to prompt mid-day improvements.  Moreover, lenders are simply erring on the side of caution before buying into any apparent ceiling in rates given the multiple instances of broken ceilings on the way up. 

In more specific terms, the average lender is effectively unchanged when it comes to top tier 30yr fixed scenarios with quotes currently ranging from 4.875 to 5.125% in a majority of cases.