By Christopher Bennett
The mortgage industry is notorious for its use of acronyms and even acronyms inside acronyms (TRID, anyone?). However, there is an acronym that is highly relevant to the current rate environment: ZIRP, for zero interest rate policy. As its definition implies, this term describes the Federal Reserve’s current policy of holding the Fed funds rate at near 0% for the foreseeable future due to the economic challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic.
It may be easy for some to assume a locked-down federal funds rate means mortgage rates will remain at the historically ultra-low levels the industry has seen throughout the pandemic. Not only does history tells us this is not the case, but the recent uptick in interest rates due to the rise in the Treasury yield and increased economic spending provides even more current proof that rate swings are possible, if not inevitable during ZIRP. As such, lenders and their capital markets executives must be prepared for interest rate swings in either direction despite the current ZIRP…
This article originally appeared in National Mortgage News [subscription required].
