Will Fed rate hikes affect Mortgage Rates? not really.

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http://themortgagereports.com/17724/how-mortgage-rates-move-when-the-federal-reserve-meets

 

The Fed Does Not Control Mortgage Rates

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meets this week and your future mortgage rate is at stake.

The FOMC is a rotating, 12-person sub-committee within the Federal Reserve, headed by Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen.

The FOMC meets eight times annually on a pre-determined schedule, and on an emergency basis, when needed, as was required between 2008-2011 when the U.S. economy was staving off depression; and in 2013 when the U.S. government failed to raise its debt limit.

The FOMC's most well-known role worldwide is as keeper of the Fed Funds Rate.

The Fed Funds Rate is the prescribed rate at which banks lend money to each other on an overnight basis.

When the Fed Funds Rate is low, the Fed is attempting to promote economic growth. This is because the Fed Funds Rate is correlated to Prime Rate, which is the basis of most bank lending including many business loans and consumer credit cards.

For the Federal Reserve, manipulating the Fed Funds Rate is one way to manage its dual-charter of fostering maximum employment and maintaining stable prices.

The Fed's zero-interest rate policy has helped to create jobs -- more than 13 million since 2010 -- and, for now, price pressures within the economy remain low.

Some would say, then that the Fed is managing its dual-charter ably.

However, a low Fed Funds Rate creates wage pressure and promotes risk-taking, both of which can quickly lead to inflation (i.e. rising prices). Plus, wage pressure may be mounting with the unemployment rate at 5 percent nationwide.

For this reason, the Federal Reserve ended its zero-interest rate policy in December 2015, raising rates by 25 basis points (0.25%) for the first time in more than a decade.

However, the Fed move did not lead to an increase in consumer mortgage rates. On the contrary, mortgage rates dropped more than 50 basis points (0.50%) after the Fed's late-2015 move.

This is because U.S. mortgage rates aren't set or established by the Federal Reserve or any of its members. Rather, mortgage rates are determined by the price of mortgage-backed securities (MBS), a security sold via Wall Street.

The Federal Reserve can affect today's mortgage rates, but it cannot set them.

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ippudu mortgage rates elaa unnay ?

and June and December lo malli penchutarata..

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What a Fed rate hike means for you

 

he Federal Reserve decision Wednesday to lift its benchmark short-term interest rate by a quarter percentage point is likely to have a domino effect across the economy as it gradually pushes up rates for everything from mortgages and credit card rates to small business loans.

Consumers with credit card debt, adjustable-rate mortgages and home equity lines of credit are the most likely to be affected by a rate hike, says Greg McBride, chief analyst at Bankrate.com. He says it’s the cumulative effect that’s important, especially since the Fed already raised rates in December 2015 and December 2016.

“These interest rate hikes could add up to hundreds of dollars per month in extra fees for credit card, adjustable-rate mortgage and HELOC borrowers,” McBride says.

The Fed’s likely decision to lift the federal funds rate, which is what banks charge each other for overnight loans, will have several effects on consumers. Here's how it may impact mortgage rates, auto loans, credit cards and bank savings rates:

Mortgages

The Fed’s key short-term rate affects mortgages and other long-term rates only indirectly.

Thirty-year fixed mortgage rates hit a 2017 high last week as the average jumped to 4.21% in anticipation of the Fed’s move Wednesday and another similar hike. That is up from a year ago when the average 30-year mortgage rate was 3.68%, according to Freddie Mac.

“For consumers currently shopping for a mortgage to purchase a property or refinance an existing loan,” says NerdWallet mortgage analyst Tim Manni, a Fed rate hike "shouldn’t feel like a real shock to the system since the rate move has already been 'baked' into the market.”

A third hike later this year could boost the rate by as much as another quarter-point or so, increasing the monthly mortgage payment on a $200,000 home by up to $30.

More on mortgage rates: 

Fed rate hike: What it means for mortgage rates

 

Adjustable-rate mortgages, by contrast, typically are modified annually.

“Borrowers with adjustable rate mortgages that are seeing their rates reset should brace for higher payments. Because most ARMs only adjust once per year, the next rate reset could be a doozy if it encompasses 2 or 3 Fed hikes in the interim,” McBride says.

Adjustable rates, he says, could rise about three-quarters of a percentage point in that period, increasing the monthly payment of the $200,000 mortgage by $84.

Other factors may loom large in addition to future Fed rate hikes that will determine the direction of mortgage rates moving forward. If Congress fails to approve President Trump’s fiscal stimulus, for example, long-term rates could fall regardless of the Fed, while a faster-growing economy and higher inflation could drive up borrowing costs faster.

Auto loans

Cars are seen at an automobile dealer in Zelienople, Pa. (Photo: Keith Srakocic, AP)

Typical five-year auto loans will be more directly influenced by a quarter-point increase in the Fed’s key short-term rate, with a 4.25% car loan rate rising by a similar quarter-point, or $3 a month, McBride says.

An increase Wednesday’ and two similar interest rate increases this year would increase the monthly payment for a new $25,000 car by a total of $9.

“Nobody will be downsizing from the SUV to the compact based on rising interest rates,” he says.

How rate hikes can affect your investments: 

 

 

Credit cards and home equity lines of credit

Revolving loans with variable rates, such as credit cards and home equity lines of credit, will become more expensive since they feel the most immediate impact from an increase in the Fed’s key short-term rate.

Average credit card rates are about 16.26%, while home equity lines are about 5.21%, according to Bankrate.com.

Banks should pass along quarter-point increases in the federal funds rate to those consumer rates within weeks.

More on rates and credit cards: 

4 things credit card holders can do now to get ready for looming rate hike

 

Bank savings rates

Since banks will be able to charge a bit more for loans, they’ll have a little more leeway to pay higher interest rates on customer deposits. Don’t expect a fast or an equivalent rise in your savings accounts or CD rate though.

“Still not a whole lot of improvement for savers to count on the third time around,” McBride says.

Low interest rates have spelled narrow profit margins for banks for years. They have an opportunity to benefit from a bigger margin between what they pay in interest and what they earn from loans.

“But your odds – and your rate of return – go up dramatically if you are seeking out the top-yielding offers from banks that are willing to pay more in order to bring in deposits. They’re also the most likely to raise rates in an effort to remain competitive,”  McBride says.

NerdWallet credit and banking analyst Sean McQuay advises you should search for a higher-yield savings account.

“Saving in a high-yield versus low-yield account would earn Americans $5.6 billion more per year in savings account interest,” McQuay says. A high-yield savings account pays about $275 more per year than a low-interest account on savings of $25,000, according to NerdWallet.