3 Smart Mortgage Moves in This Interest Rate Climate
Ever since the end of the housing boom in the mid-2000s, homeowners have benefited from some of the lowest mortgage rates in decades. Efforts from the Federal Reserve to stimulate economic growth held rates down, and that made it much more affordable for mortgage borrowers to get the financing they needed either to purchase new homes or to refinance their existing mortgage debt.
More recently, though, the Fed has started moving to reverse its past accommodative monetary policy by raising interest rates. June's quarter-point push higher marked the third increase in just six months and the fourth since the central bank's first move in late 2015. In response, the mortgage market has seen prevailing lending rates move higher as well. Current and would-be homeowners should take a close look at several factors that are becoming more important for mortgage borrowers in the current rate environment, and it's important to do so quickly to avoid the potential negative impact of further rate changes.
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Source: Fool.com