For example, when the Federal Reserve engages in quantitative easing, as it did during the pandemic, it buys long-term assets like Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities (MBS), increasing bond demand and pushing bond prices up and long-term yields down, including mortgage rates. The Fed's MBS purchases put additional downward pressure on mortgage rates in 2020 and 2021. Conversely, during quantitative tightening since 2022, the Fed has been letting MBS assets roll off its balance sheet without replacing ...

Mortgage rates on Friday fell below 6% for the first time in years, after President Donald Trump ordered his “representatives” to begin buying $200 billion worth of mortgage bonds, his latest push to lower costs for Americans grappling with the high cost of living.The average interest rate for a 30-year fixed residential mortgage hit 5.99% on Friday morning, down from 6.21% on Thursday, according to data provider Mortgage News Daily. That’s the lowest the 30-year average rate has been since February 2023.As ...

President Trump’s latest housing affordability bet calls for mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to buy $200 billion of mortgage bonds, a move that aims to help push mortgage rates below 6%. “I am instructing my Representatives to BUY $200 BILLION DOLLARS IN MORTGAGE BONDS. This will drive Mortgage Rates DOWN, monthly payments DOWN, and make the cost of owning a home more affordable,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Thursday. Read more: When will mortgage rates go down? The trend into 2026. The ...

Shares opened higher in Japan and Australia, while South Korea lagged. A flat day for the S&P 500 on Thursday masked selling in tech behemoths such as Nvidia Corp. Treasury futures inched up and mortgage backed securities rallied after Trump said he was directing the purchase of $200 billion of mortgage bonds.The rebound in equities after April’s tariff-driven slump faces a key test from the court ruling, just as investors brace for “It’s unclear at this point whether this is just a breather or a full rota ...