Business
Mortgage Rates Are Going Down. The Drop Isn’t All Because of Trump.
Mortgage rates are nearly a percentage point lower than they were when Trump took office. The president’s direct actions are only part of the story.
Mortgage rates typically move with the 10-year Treasury yield. That yield, in turn, is connected to expectations for the economy and monetary policy in the coming decade. It rose, along with mortgage rates, in 2022 and 2023 as mounting inflation proved difficult to control without rate hikes.
The 10-year Treasury yield has broadly moved lower over the past year, helped in part by a slowdown in shelter inflation. Because of how shelter is measured, the inflation reading notably lags private measures of rents, which began to show signs of moderation in 2023, Barron’s_ reported. Soft inflation data and the expectation of future Federal Reserve rate cuts have helped—though the ride lower has been bumpy.