By Dan Green
Via QE3, the Federal Reserve purchases $85 billion in bonds monthly — $40 billion mortgage-backed bonds and $45 billion treasury bonds. Its September 2012 launch ushered in the period of the lowest mortgage rates in history, with 30-year fixed rate mortgage rates dropping to 3.31 percent nationwide for borrowers willing to pay 0.7 discount points.
Because QE3 helped bring rates down, the absence of QE3 should help lead rates up. Wall Street thought the Fed would announce its QE3 wind-down after its September meeting. The Fed did not.
Mortgage rates are making huge improvements in the wake of the Fed’s statement
Published by