Homebuilders Hammered Into Bear Market As Mortgage Rates Top 5%
by Tyler Durden
ZeroHedge.com
Tue, 10/09/2018
For the first time since Feb 2011, US 30Y mortgage rates have topped 5.0%, according to Mortgage News Daily.
As CNBC reports, the average rate on the 30-year fixed loan sat just below 4% a year ago, after dropping below 3.5% in 2016. It just crossed the 5% mark. That is the first time in eight years, and it is poised to move higher. Five percent may still be historically cheap, but higher rates, combined with other challenges facing today’s housing market could cause potential buyers to pull back.
“Five percent is definitely an emotional level inasmuch as it scares prospective buyers about how high rates may continue to go,” said Matthew Graham, chief operating officer of MND.
US Homebuilder stocks have tracked dismal housing data lower for much of the year but the last few days have seen them accelerate lower (amid a record losing streak) amid The Fed’s increasingly hawkish testimony…
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