U.S. central bank has hiked interest rates at an aggressive pace not seen since the 1980s to a two-decade high of 5.25 to 5.5 percent current range

Since March 2022, the U.S. central bank has hiked interest rates at an aggressive pace not seen since the 1980s to a two-decade high of 5.25 to 5.5 percent current range. This has pushed up the cost of borrowing for mortgages to its most expensive in 20 years. That policy move was geared to help slow down inflation, which still sits above the Fed's target of 2 percent link

“Mostly, we think the housing market is going to improve over the next half of the year,” Glenn Kelman, chief executive of Redfin, a real estate brokerage site, said on a May 22 appearance on CNBC’s “Money Movers.” link

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage slid to 6.99% on June 6 after climbing to 7.22% on May 20, according to Freddie Mac data via the Federal Reserve. “Mortgage rates are down a bit from May highs, but that hasn’t spurred a surge of competition among buyers in the housing market,” Divounguy said. Affordability remains a top priority for buyers and rates stayed above 7% for long. link