Rate Watch
SLIGHTLY NEGATIVE: Bonds selling off — rates trending higher. This is a slightly negative move for borrowers.
Bonds are at their lows of the day. UMBS 5.5 is off an eighth at 99.26, the 10-year is at 4.721% after adding about three basis points, and the top-tier 30-year fixed sits at 6.73%, two basis points above Friday.
The morning's Empire Manufacturing beat started the pressure and it never let up. Oil has climbed through the session on Iran escalation, and bond yields have tracked it closely enough that fuel prices are effectively setting the direction — that correlation has been the dominant intraday variable for two weeks now. The practical piece: MBS are an eighth of a point below where they were when some lenders printed rate sheets this morning. That puts negative reprices on the table from the faster-moving lenders. If you are floating, check pricing before the close rather than after. Context matters more than the move, though. At 6.73% you are still well under the 6.85% high from earlier this month and only four basis points above Thursday's 6.69%, which was the lowest reading since July 17. Last week's soft CPI and PPI did the real work, and one session of oil-driven selling does not undo it. Wednesday at 2:00 PM Eastern is the week's one first-tier event — the minutes from the last FOMC meeting. That is what traders are positioned for and the most likely thing to reset pricing between now and Friday. Housing Starts and Building Permits land Tuesday at 8:30 Eastern, second-tier unless one of them badly misses. If you are inside 30 days of closing and happy with today's pricing, the risk on this week's calendar is Wednesday afternoon — today's move is an oil story, not a Fed story. Make sense? — David Burson, NetRate Mortgage
Read more ↓Treasury Yields
NetRate Mortgage vs MND
Rates as of Aug 17, 2026
| Product | NetRate Mortgage | MND National Avg | MND Day Change | Your Savings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
30-Yr Fixed Conventional | 6.490% | 6.730% | +0.020% ↑ | −0.240% |
15-Yr Fixed Conventional | 5.750% | 6.300% | +0.010% ↑ | −0.550% |
FHA 30-Yr Government | 5.875% | 6.310% | 0.000% | −0.435% |
VA 30-Yr Veteran | 5.990% | 6.330% | 0.000% | −0.340% |
Jumbo 30-Yr Conforming Plus | — | — | — | — |
780+ FICO · 75% LTV · Purchase · Owner-occupied | National benchmark from Mortgage News Daily (MND)
Economic Calendar
National Mortgage Rate History
Benchmark Index Rates
What’s Moving Rates
The morning's Empire Manufacturing beat started the pressure and it never let up. Oil has climbed through the session on Iran escalation, and bond yields have tracked it closely enough that fuel prices are effectively setting the direction — that correlation has been the dominant intraday variable for two weeks now. The practical piece: MBS are an eighth of a point below where they were when some lenders printed rate sheets this morning. That puts negative reprices on the table from the faster-moving lenders. If you are floating, check pricing before the close rather than after. Context matters more than the move, though. At 6.73% you are still well under the 6.85% high from earlier this month and only four basis points above Thursday's 6.69%, which was the lowest reading since July 17. Last week's soft CPI and PPI did the real work, and one session of oil-driven selling does not undo it. Wednesday at 2:00 PM Eastern is the week's one first-tier event — the minutes from the last FOMC meeting. That is what traders are positioned for and the most likely thing to reset pricing between now and Friday. Housing Starts and Building Permits land Tuesday at 8:30 Eastern, second-tier unless one of them badly misses. If you are inside 30 days of closing and happy with today's pricing, the risk on this week's calendar is Wednesday afternoon — today's move is an oil story, not a Fed story. Make sense? — David Burson, NetRate Mortgage
Market News
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About NetRate Mortgage's Rate Watch
NetRate Mortgage tracks daily mortgage rates sourced directly from our lender partners. Unlike survey-based averages from Freddie Mac or Bankrate, our data reflects actual rates available to licensed mortgage brokers — updated every business day.
The national average rate shown on this page comes from Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS), published weekly. This survey-based rate includes approximately 0.7 discount points and reflects retail pricing offered directly to consumers by banks and lenders.
The difference between broker pricing and retail pricing exists because retail lenders build their margin, overhead, and profit into the rate they quote you. When you work with a mortgage broker like NetRate Mortgage, you access lender pricing directly and pay a transparent broker fee instead — typically resulting in a lower overall cost.
The historical chart shows the national average, using daily Mortgage News Daily observations when available and Freddie Mac's weekly PMMS series through FRED as the fallback. It is market context, not a personalized quote or a record of NetRate Mortgage pricing.
Market commentary is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Rates shown are par rates (zero discount points) and are subject to change without notice. Actual rates depend on individual borrower qualifications including credit score, loan amount, property type, and occupancy. National average data sourced from Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey via FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data). This product uses the FRED API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. NetRate Mortgage LLC NMLS #1111861. Equal Housing Opportunity.