Video Transcript
Let's talk about mortgage rates in a government shutdown because, effective today, we're in one. And we do have prior shutdowns to show us what we might expect mortgage rates to do going forward. Now, there have been four government shutdowns that last longer than a day, a weekday, since 1980, and in all of them, mortgage rates have dropped but not by all that much. In November 1995, the shutdown, it lasted less than a week. During that period, mortgage rates fell two basis points. 0.02 percentage points. In 1996, after a three-week shutdown, rates again had dropped just 2 basis points. In the 2013 shutdown, there was a 6 basis point drop. And after the most recent shutdown, which lasted more than a month, it ended in January 2019, mortgage rates fell 10 basis points. So now the government is shut down again. Mortgage markets appear unsure of how they should react. So far, rates are down slightly but this is nothing to cheer. Essential services for home buyers and sellers are being denied. Workers are being furloughed or told to work without pay. Can't even look up FHA guidelines, really, because the HUD.gov website is, has been taken over in somewhat of a Rorschach test. You can go see that one for yourself. Leave a note in the comments. I'm Dan with Homebuyer.com. Happy homebuying.
Mortgage Rates In A Government Shutdown (HUD.gov)
Mortgage rates have historically dropped during government shutdowns, with a decrease of 10 basis points noted after the 2019 shutdown. The current shutdown has led to slight reductions in rates, but essential services for home buyers and sellers are affected.
Video Transcript
Let's talk about mortgage rates in a government shutdown because, effective today, we're in one. And we do have prior shutdowns to show us what we might expect mortgage rates to do going forward. Now, there have been four government shutdowns that last longer than a day, a weekday, since 1980, and in all of them, mortgage rates have dropped but not by all that much. In November 1995, the shutdown, it lasted less than a week. During that period, mortgage rates fell two basis points. 0.02 percentage points. In 1996, after a three-week shutdown, rates again had dropped just 2 basis points. In the 2013 shutdown, there was a 6 basis point drop. And after the most recent shutdown, which lasted more than a month, it ended in January 2019, mortgage rates fell 10 basis points. So now the government is shut down again. Mortgage markets appear unsure of how they should react. So far, rates are down slightly but this is nothing to cheer. Essential services for home buyers and sellers are being denied. Workers are being furloughed or told to work without pay. Can't even look up FHA guidelines, really, because the HUD.gov website is, has been taken over in somewhat of a Rorschach test. You can go see that one for yourself. Leave a note in the comments. I'm Dan with Homebuyer.com. Happy homebuying.
