Portland Mortgage Market Update — March 20, 2026

Rates continue to take a beating this week. There was a higher than anticipated Inflation report on Wednesday morning. Then the Fed meeting that day where they held rates the same (as was expected), but were decidedly more muted in the post meeting press conference. Finally, today the European Central Bank (Europe's version of the FED) hinted at an increase of interest rates at their next meeting. As a result, the rate that was offered on Tuesday at no discount point costs would not be offered at a cost of 1.25%, so pricing is worse by 125 basis points.

What do I mean pricing vs rate? Rates are impacted by the pricing associated with getting an specific rate. I am sure you have heard of a loan priced at "Par", meaning there are no discount point costs associated with the rate. If the borrower took a marginally higher rate, that may equate to the lender being able to offer some credit towards their closing costs. If the borrower wanted a lower rate, they would have to pay discount points. The cost of those discount points/ lender credit (or "rebate") is what I am referring to as pricing. Pricing changes throughout the day, so where the Par rate on Tuesday might have been 6.25%, that rate is now at a cost of 1.25 discount points, and the current "Par" pricing is around 6.5%.

What can you do to protect your clients in this volatile market?

• Have them reach out to their lender to make sure they are still pre-approved at this rate and if they need to adjust their anticipated sales price • Have them confirm with their lender that they have a free float down policy • Have them ask their lender what specific steps said lender is taking to protect them in this volatile rate environment • If they are not happy with any of the lender responses above, have them call me ASAP!