October 9, 2026 | Palm Beach County • Broward County • The Gold Coast The Opportunity Isn’t Always in the Price Something interesting is happening in South Florida real estate. Mortgage interest rates have risen for several consecutive weeks. Buyers are becoming more sensitive to monthly payments. Sellers are having to think more carefully about…

For the first time in several weeks, there is no need to ask which half of Congress is working. Neither one is conducting regular legislative business. The House left Washington on September 16 and is not scheduled for regular voting until after the November election. The Senate finished its pre-election work September 30 and, other…

Inflation Has Cooled. But Progress Has Stalled. We got another inflation report this week, and at first glance it would be easy to call it good news. I am not sure I would. Inflation is certainly not as bad as it was earlier this year. But the latest numbers do not show much additional improvement…

The House of Representatives is not holding regular votes this week. House leadership ended its pre-election voting schedule on September 16, sending members back to their districts to campaign ahead of the November 3 midterm elections. The House has held only brief pro forma sessions since then and is not scheduled to resume regular legislative…

Mortgage Rates Jumped. The Bigger Lesson Is How Fast They Can Move. Mortgage interest rates went up this week. And not by a couple of basis points. Mortgage News Daily’s daily 30-year fixed-rate index finished Thursday at 7.45%, up from 7.26% Wednesday and 7.17% Tuesday. That’s a meaningful move in a very short period of…

When buyers negotiate a home purchase, the first instinct is usually simple: “Get the seller to lower the price.” Sometimes that is the right move. But for a buyer putting 3% down, 3.5% down with FHA, or using down payment assistance, a seller credit can sometimes be much more valuable than an equal reduction in…

The Fed Raised Rates. So Why Did the 10-Year Treasury Fall? The Federal Reserve raised its benchmark short-term interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point this week. And whenever the Fed changes rates, I hear essentially the same thing: “Well, mortgage rates just went up a quarter point.” Except that isn’t how it…

The Cushion Got Tested Last week, I wrote about something most mortgage borrowers never hear about: the spread between the 10-year Treasury and mortgage rates. That spread had narrowed enough to help keep mortgage rates below 7%, even while the 10-year Treasury remained unusually high. I probably should have knocked on wood. Because this week,…

Mortgage Rates Could Be Higher. So Why Aren’t They? Freddie Mac reported the average 30-year fixed mortgage at 6.71% this week, up from 6.66% last week. The 15-year average was 6.04%. Those rates are higher than buyers would prefer, but viewed over the long history of mortgage lending, the upper-6% range is not particularly extraordinary.…

Congress has been quiet during the August recess, and there were no major new veterans benefits or VA home-loan laws passed this week. That changes Monday. The House returns to legislative business on August 31, while the Senate will remain in its state work period until September 14. House of Representatives When lawmakers return, there…