A sign announcing a pending sale is shown in front of a house, Monday, Jan. 23, 2023, in Brooklyn Park, Minn. On Thursday, Freddie Mac reports on this week's average U.S. mortgage rates. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)Abbie Parr/The Associated Press
Variable mortgage rates just broke a two-decade high. That’s the bad news.
The good news is, the Bank of Canada thinks it’s possible that prime rate may not have to climb any more.
Bond traders like the sound of that, and have pushed down bond yields in anticipation of such news. Lower yields usually mean lower fixed mortgage rates, and that’s exactly what we’re now seeing.
Mortgages 101: What to know about fixed vs. variable rates in Canada
Uninsured five-year fixed rates have once again cracked the 5 per cent floor, for the first time in four months. HSBC – the rate leader that RBC intends to take over – was first to offer such a deal this week. For uninsured five-year mortgages, HSBC is now advertising 4.89 per cent.
For an insured five-year fixed, national providers are now as low as 4.39 per cent, and falling.
Robert McLister is an interest rate analyst, mortgage strategist and editor of MortgageLogic.news. You can follow him on Twitter at @RobMcLister.
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