March 16, 2023: Over the first few months of the quarter the mortgage market has been about as volatile as anyone can remember. Beginning late last year, after Thanksgiving, rates slid (improved) for about 6 straight weeks. Since that time, we've seen rates spike again by about a point, then relax yet again for much of the last month before they began trending back the other direction yet again over the past week or two. That's enough fluctuation to make your head spin. Purchase applications tend to shadow the rates, whichever direction they go. This is nothing new. Rates always fluctuate. If you I quoted you a rate right now, it would be inaccurate by the time you called your favorite lender to lock in your rate.

 

Interestingly, housing inventory is also sensitive to the fluctuation. Rising rates cause hesitation in the marketplace. Low inventory is good for homesellers and in some price ranges, multiple offers have returned in part becuase there simply aren't enough houses to meet buyer demand. As spring approaches, there have historically been predictable increases in the number of homes listed.

 

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James Clear, Atomic Habits