3/22 - The Federal Reserve's Meeting #thefed #mortgagerates #federalreserve #inflation

How did the Fed's latest meeting impact interest rates? The Federal Reserve met a couple days ago and they talked all things economy, interest rates and inflation, which are all the hot topics that the mortgage and real estate world. The Fed kept a pretty level middle of the road stance. It said that inflation is not quite down to the level that they want to see it. They want to see a few more good months before they start cutting their Federal Reserve rates. And that's what the mortgage rates are waiting for big time as well. They want to see that inflation is fully under control and mortgage rates will continue coming down. So many people believe the Fed might start cutting rates in June, but still the jury's out on that. But the Fed did say they expect to cut rates three times this year, which means good promising things for mortgage rates the second half or quarter two, quarter three, possibly of 2024. The Fed also mentioned they might need to start tapering their balance sheet. Now, this is where it gets into a whole bunch of Federal Reserve jargon. But the gist of it is the Fed has a whole bunch of debt. We know our nation has a whole bunch of debt. They want to start sliding off their balance sheet. And when they do that, they oftentimes reinvest it into Treasuries or bonds. Mortgages turn into bonds with the Fed buys. Or when people buy bonds, it actually makes mortg rates stronger or lower. The little reading between the lines here is the Fed might, in a whole different direction, throw a helpful curveball in the mix. On top of cutting their rates at a few months, ideally, they might also start investing into bonds, which could also help be a boost for lower mortgage rates. We'll keep you tuned in 2024.