Housing market red alert: Mortgage rates hit 8%, highest since turn of century

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Zachary Halaschak is an economics reporter at the Washington Examiner. Before moving to Washington, he worked in Alaska, covering politics, government, and crime for the Ketchikan Daily News. While there, Zach won the Alaska Press Club’s second-place award for best reporting on crime or courts for his coverage of a local surgeon’s alleged murder.

Mortgage rates have risen to their highest level in 23 years, wreaking havoc on the housing market and making life more challenging for homebuyers.

“The first break above the 23-year ceiling took place in late 2022, and it wasn't challenged again until August of 2023. Since then, however, we haven't made it more than a few weeks without hitting a new long-term high,” he said in a news release. The Federal Reserve has been raising interest rates since March 2022 and has hiked its rate target from near-zero to 5.25% to 5.50%, the highest since the dot-com bubble. The higher short-term rates are meant to translate into higher rates across different financial instruments, including mortgages.

“Given the uncertainties and risks and how far we have come, the committee is proceeding carefully,” Powell said. “We will make decisions about the extent of additional policy firming and how long policy will remain restrictive based on the totality of the incoming data, the evolving outlook, and the balance of risks.”

 

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