Seattle Mortgage Rates Today 1/31/2013:

What’s the current trend in mortgage rates?

• Mortgage Rates remain unchanged

What’s happening in financial markets?

Given that the Federal Reserve continues to support the economy with the bond-buying spree known as Quantitative Easing 3 to the tune of $85 billion per month, stocks continue their climb at the expense of bonds.  As investors begin to feel more confident investing in somewhat riskier assets, i.e. stocks, bonds will inevitably be negatively affected.

Remember when negative sentiment out of Europe pushed the bond market higher and rates were lower?  Well, optimism out of Europe is leading global investors back to the fold.

How does that affect my mortgage rate?

As we see mortgage bonds decline, rates will continue to slowly rise.  Economic reports will induce slight volatility on a day-to-day basis; however, there is still an opportunity for those who have a bit of time.  Locking your rate is imperative if you are currently under contract to close on your home within the next couple of weeks.