Mortgage rates are influenced by two main types of factors: those you can control and those you can’t. On the personal side, lenders typically offer better rates to borrowers with strong credit scores, lower debt relative to income, and larger down payments. Comparing lenders can also help you secure a lower rate. When the economy is weak, rates often drop to encourage borrowing. When it’s strong, rates tend to rise to slow spending. 15-Year vs. 30-Year Mortgages The two most common loan...

Consumer Price Index (CPI) The Consumer Price Index, widely known as CPI, is an economic data point that gives key information on market movements specifically regarding inflation. CPI reports the average change monthly of consumer spending for a chosen group of goods and services. This chosen group is called the market basket, where there is a certain group of goods and services that the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics takes into account when measuring CPI. This basket of goods and services...

Political tension has a way of spilling into financial markets, and recent tariff threats are a clear example. When former President Donald Trump floated the idea of new tariffs tied to negotiations over Greenland, investors reacted quickly, pushing bond yields higher. The 10-year Treasury yield, which mortgage rates tend to track, jumped to about 4.25 percent, sending borrowing costs up almost immediately. The move did not happen in isolation. At the same time, investors were already on edge...