Rates & Markets
Where rates come from, why yours differs from the ad, and how to think about timing.
Nothing in a mortgage gets more attention and less understanding than the interest rate. This section pulls back the curtain: what actually moves rates, why the number quoted to you differs from the one in the advertisement, and how to think clearly about waiting, locking and paying points — without the hype.
How Mortgage Rates Are Actually Set
Hint: it is not simply ‘the Fed.’ Mortgage rates live in the bond market.
Why Your Rate Differs From the Advertised Rate
That eye-catching number assumes a specific, often ideal, borrower. Here is what moves your real rate.
Should You Wait for Rates to Fall?
The timing question everyone asks — and a clearer way to think about it.
Discount Points: A Deep Dive
Prepaid interest that buys a lower rate — brilliant for some borrowers, a waste for others.
Rate Locks, Float-Downs & Extensions
How to protect your rate while your loan closes — and the options if the market moves.
Temporary Buydowns: The 2-1 and How It Works
A lower rate for the first years of your loan — often paid by the seller. Here is the catch and the benefit.
Lock or Float? Timing Your Rate
Once you are happy with a rate, should you lock it or gamble on a better one? A clear way to decide.