Mortgage Rates Still At Historic Lows

Comments made earlier this month by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke supported the general consensus that the economy is improving, but less rapidly than expected. Bernanke reiterated these sentiments at the press conference held this past Wednesday. The Fed has revised its forecast for growth and raised the estimate for future unemployment numbers. So what does all this mean? Per the chairman, one thing it means is the Fed will continue to target low interest rates with no immediate plans for change. They have not specified how long they will maintain this policy, indicating it depends on a variety of indicators: inflation, unemployment, etc. Many experts believe the Fed may look to keep target rates low for as long as a year.

In turn, this will keep mortgage rates down for the near future. Some people may feel they missed the "bottom" with regard to rates. Interest rates do fluctuate from day-to-day, so it may be hard for the public to keep track of what exactly is the very "bottom." What’s important, though, is the trend; and right now the trend is down.  The last two months have seen a significant drop. Just this week the 10- treasury hit a recent low of 2.93 percent. 

The low rates of the last year or so have provided some of the cheapest money available in a very long time. It’s still a great time to refinance or purchase.