The Mortgage Porter Weekly | June Jobs Miss, Steady Rates & Total Cost Analysis

Job growth came in soft, mortgage rates held steady, and oil prices remain in focus as the situation in the Middle East continues to develop. Here’s your Mortgage Porter Weekly update for the week of July 6th, 2026. [Read more…]

2026 Mortgage Rate Forecast: Midyear Update

Mortgage Rate Forecast for 2026Six months ago, I published my 2026 mortgage rate predictions, and if you’d told me back in December that the biggest driver of rates this year would be a war halfway around the world, I would’ve said that’s not usually how this works. But here we are at the midyear mark, and that’s exactly what happened. Let’s recap what actually unfolded in the first half of 2026 and then get into the updated forecasts for the rest of the year. [Read more…]

Mortgage Rates This Week: Inflation Heats Up, Jobs Data Looms

Inflation, jobs data, and a packed holiday week — here’s what you need to know about mortgage rates and the housing market for the week of June 29, 2026. [Read more…]

Refinance to Pay Off Student Loans Without Cash-Out Pricing

Student Loans and MortgagesIf you’ve got federal student loans, you’ve probably heard that repayment is about to change — again. Starting July 1, 2026, the SAVE plan officially ends, two brand-new repayment plans launch, and millions of borrowers will be reshuffled into new monthly payment amounts. That reshuffle doesn’t just affect your loan servicer statement. It flows directly into how a mortgage lender calculates your debt-to-income ratio (DTI) — which affects how much home you qualify for. [Read more…]

When Can I Buy a Home After Bankruptcy?

Buying a home in Washington after a bankruptcyThis is a question I get more often than you’d think, and the answer surprises most people: a bankruptcy doesn’t permanently disqualify you from getting a mortgage and depending on the type of bankruptcy you filed and which loan program you use, you may be eligible sooner than you’d expect — in some cases, before your bankruptcy is even fully discharged.

The two things that determine your timeline are which chapter you filed and which loan program you use. Let’s break both down. [Read more…]