Mortgage rates today, Dec 26, 2023

Today’s mortgage rates

Mortgage rates inched higher last Friday and edged up over the entire week. But that hardly matters. What’s important is that we’ve kept almost all of the gains caused by the giant falls we saw on Dec. 13 and 14.

Earlier, markets were signaling that mortgage rates today might yet again barely budge. But these mini-trends often switch direction or speed later in the day.

Current mortgage and refinance rates

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Should you lock your mortgage rate today?

I continue to hope for a gentle downward trend in mortgage rates that lasts for several months. Of course, events could mess up my prediction. And there are bound to be periods within that trend when those rates rise. But things are looking pretty good right now.

So, my personal rate lock recommendations are:

• LOCK if closing in 7 days
• FLOAT if closing in 15 days
• FLOAT if closing in 30 days
• FLOAT if closing in 45 days
• FLOAT if closing in 60 days

However, with so much uncertainty at the moment, your instincts could easily turn out to be as good as mine — or better. So let your gut and your own tolerance for risk help guide you.

>Related: 7 Tips to get the best refinance rate

Market data affecting today’s mortgage rates

Here’s a snapshot of the state of play this morning at about 9:50 a.m. (ET). The data are mostly compared with roughly the same timethe business day before, so much of the movement will often have happened in the previous session. The numbers are:

• The yield on 10-year Treasury notes edged up to 3.90% from 3.87%. (Bad for mortgage rates.) More than any other market, mortgage rates typically tend to follow these particular Treasury bond yields
• Major stock indexes were rising this morning. (Bad for mortgage rates.) When investors buy shares, they’re often selling bonds, which pushes those prices down and increases yields and mortgage rates. The opposite may happen when indexes are lower. But this is an imperfect relationship
• Oil prices rose to $75.49 from $74.84 a barrel. (Bad for mortgage rates*.) Energy prices play a prominent role in creating inflation and also point to future economic activity
• Gold prices ticked down to $2,066 from $2,081 an ounce. (Neutral for mortgage rates*.) It is generally better for rates when gold prices rise and worse when they fall. Gold tends to rise when investors worry about the economy.
• CNN…