Mortgage rates bottomed out at 5.99% on February 27th – the day before the Iran war started. Rates peaked one month later on March 27th – hitting 6.625%. Rates then fell steadily into April but have since been rising in response to escalating tensions and rising oil prices. I share all this because rates shot up again today in response to Trump’s latest action, called “Project Higher Interest Rates.” OK – actually it is called “Project Freedom.” It is an effort by the U.S. to restore freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz and free stranded commercial vessels. This action escalated tensions and pushed oil prices (the main cause of higher rates) higher again. Today’s average mortgage rate is 6.52%. We’re still below the peak we saw in March, but we’re getting close.Read More