Borrowing against home equity can protect an old low mortgage rate, but it can also reset a loan at today’s higher rate and add closing costs.
The CBO says the debt milestone does not equal an immediate crisis, but it does raise costs that can ripple through the economy.
A Colorado homebuyer says higher rates brought less competition, more room to negotiate, and a path to refinance later.
ATTOM says underwater loans are still a small share of the market, but they are concentrated in several Midwestern states and the District of Columbia.
Zillow’s latest daily averages show small but meaningful gaps between purchase and refinance rates across several loan types.
Rates moved up slightly after a brief bond-market reprieve, with most loan types still clustered in the mid-6% area.
Bankrate says the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 6.71% on Aug. 24, 2026, after years of sharp swings driven by inflation, Fed policy and Treasury yields.
The city says its down payment aid is temporarily out of money, with some Houston neighborhoods still under a separate suspension tied to an EPA review.
Millions of renters may qualify if their building used RealPage pricing tools between 2018 and 2025.
A Zillow analysis says the path from renting to owning has stretched sharply since 2019, with long timelines in many markets and the longest waits in shortage-hit metros.