Mortgage Rates Today, Nov. 20, 2024: Putin Fails to Spook Markets
The average 30-year fixed rate mortgage is 6.93% today, an increase of 0.03% since yesterday. The 15-year fixed mortgage rate stands at 6%, up by 0.04%. The 30-year FHA mortgage now averages 6.21%, having dropped by 0.04. Meanwhile, the 30-year jumbo mortgage rate is 7.39%, reflecting an increase of 0.03%.
In brief
Mortgage rates moved lower rather than higher yesterday. And that was strange because they often greet negative geopolitical developments with the rending of garments and the gnashing of teeth.
So why did they respond to President Vladimir Putin's bellicose rhetoric yesterday with scarcely a raised eyebrow? There could be several reasons.
One is that Putin has cried wolf too often since his invasion of Ukraine began. He's repeatedly drawn red lines only to back down when he's been ignored.
And yesterday's developments didn't even constitute a red line. In PBS's words, Putin's new doctrine " ... is formulated broadly to avoid a firm commitment to use nuclear weapons and keep Putin’s options open."
Given that he's an autocrat, Putin changed little yesterday. He could have launched nukes at any time previously. And his signing of a new document looks to have more to do with theater than threat levels.
So, mortgage rates continued to drift Tuesday. And, despite seeming volatility, they ended yesterday at precisely the same level as they were on election day evening, according to Mortgage News Daily's archive.
Perhaps investors are waiting to see how much of President-elect Donald Trump's campaign rhetoric survives contact with the demands of government.
Mortgage Rate Trends: Past 90 Days
Purchase Rates
| Loan Type | Rate | APR | Daily Change | Monthly Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30-Year Fixed | 6.93% | 6.97% | +0.03% | +0.22% |
| 15-Year Fixed | 6% | 6.06% | +0.04% | +0.27% |
| 30-Year Fixed FHA | 6.21% | 7.04% | -0.04% | +0.2% |
| 30-Year Fixed VA | 6.27% | 6.42% | +0.08% | +0.2% |
| 30-Year Fixed USDA | 6.24% | 6.38% | +0.04% | +0.16% |
| 30-Year Fixed Jumbo | 7.39% | 7.41% | +0.03% | +0.31% |
| 5/6 Year ARM | 6.69% | 6.72% | +0% | +0.03% |
Refinance Rates
| Loan Type | Rate | APR | Daily Change | Monthly Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30-Year Fixed | 6.92% | 6.96% | +0.02% | +0.23% |
| 15-Year Fixed | 5.84% | 5.9% | +0.03% | +0.27% |
| 30-Year Fixed FHA | 6.19% | 7.02% | -0.04% | +0.19% |
| 30-Year Fixed VA | 6.28% | 6.44% | +0.08% | +0.21% |
| 5/6 Year ARM | 6.75% | 6.78% | +0.05% | +0.11% |
Coming up
Mortgage rates today and this week
There are no economic reports on today's calendar. However, three senior Federal Reserve officials have speaking engagements. With markets now wondering whether the Fed will cut general interest rates on Dec. 18, their words might carry more weight than usual.
Tomorrow's a little more lively. However, its three economic reports rarely move mortgage rates far. They are:
- Initial jobless claims for the week ending Nov. 16 — Markets expect 220,000 new claims, up from 217,000 the previous week
- October existing home sales — Markets expect 3.91 million, up from September's 3.84 million
- October leading economic indicators — Markets expect a small improvement to -0.4% from September's -0.5%
As usual, mortgage rates tend to rise on good economic news and fall on bad. So, we'd like to see higher-than-expected numbers for the unemployment data and lower-than-expected ones for the other two.
But don't get too excited. Even if they all come in on our side, tomorrow's reports are typically too weak to have a perceptible effect on those rates.
Friday's reports are a bit more likely to have some impact on mortgage rates. But their effects tend to be limited and temporary. We'll brief you on them tomorrow.
Peter Warden has been covering mortgage, real estate, and personal finance for 15 years. He has appeared on The Mortgage Reports, Credit Sesame, Bills.com, and other publications.
