January 2022 mortgage rates are under pressure to move higher as Omicron spreads throughout the country. That being said, Omicron and its potential impact on the economy are only a small part of why January 2022 mortgage rates are at risk of moving higher.

Inflation and the Fed are the two big reasons why mortgage rates are increasing and it’s what the market will be focused on in the coming weeks.

Opportunities And Risks For January 2022

The opportunity for January 2022 mortgage rates to improve, compared to December levels, is slim to none.

Does that mean mortgage rates are going back to 4% or even 5%? No, but it is very unlikely that they will improve upon the December lows. Keep an eye on the ISM, CPI, Retail Sales, and Employment data.

If those reports come in at or above expectations then that might push January 2022 mortgage rates even higher.

January 2022 Mortgage Rate Forecast For California

Here are our latest January 2022 mortgage rate forecasts for California:

30-year fixed rates below 3.125%
20-year fixed rates below 3.00%
15-year fixed rates below 2.50%

Our January 2022 mortgage rate forecast is based on properties in California, a loan amount of $350,000, a primary home, excellent credit (740 or higher credit score), and a Loan-To-Value ratio below 60% (purchase transactions).

We may see days in which mortgage rates spike higher however overall we believe there will be opportunities to lock a mortgage rate at or below these levels throughout the month of March.

Mortgage Rate And Payment Chart

Here is a quick reference guide to January 2022 mortgage rate possibilities in California (these are not quotes; just examples) and the payments associated with each level based on various conforming loan amounts. See our important disclosure below.

30-Year Fixed-Rate Mortgage:

Term	Loan Amount	Mortgage Rate	Payment
30-year fixed	$290,000	2.875%	$1,203.19
30-year fixed	$390,000	2.875%	$1,618.08
30-year fixed	$490,000	2.875%	$2,032.97
30-year fixed	$590,000	2.875%	$2,447.87

20-Year Fixed-Rate Mortgage:

Term	Loan Amount	Mortgage Rate	Payment
20-year fixed	$290,000	2.75%	$1,572.28
20-year fixed	$390,000	2.75%	$2,114.45
20-year fixed	$490,000	2.75%	$2,656.61
20-year fixed	$590,000	2.75%	$3,198.78

15-Year Fixed-Rate Mortgage:

Term	Loan Amount	Mortgage Rate	Payment
15-year fixed	$290,000	2.375%	$1,916.67
15-year fixed	$390,000	2.375%	$2,577.59
15-year fixed	$490,000	2.375%	$3,238.51
15-year fixed	$590,000	2.375%	$3,899.43

Important Disclosure For January 2022 mortgage rates: The above is not a mortgage rate quote; nor is it an offer to lend. It’s only a generic example of various mortgage rates, loan amounts, and payments. Our mortgage rate chart is meant to educate and inform our readers. The current January 2022 mortgage rate market may be higher or lower than the examples listed in these mortgage rate charts. Also; mortgage rates can and often do adjust multiple times a day.

California Mortgage Calculator

Using a mortgage calculator to figure out your monthly payment is an essential part of buying a home in California or refinancing a current mortgage. Use our free mortgage calculator to help you determine what you can afford.

With our online mortgage calculator, you can also factor in your property tax amount along with your annual homeowner’s insurance amount with your monthly mortgage payment.

Our California mortgage calculator is free and easy to use.

And our mortgage calculator is especially helpful for those who want to impound their property taxes and property insurance into their monthly mortgage payment. If you have any questions about or California mortgage calculator please don’t hesitate to ask.

California VA Home Loan

Did you know we offer a great California VA Home Loan program which includes the VA streamline refinance loan program?

The VA home loan program is an excellent option for those that have served our country. Whether you are buying a home or refinancing a mortgage, the VA home loan is a solid option to consider.

And don’t forget, the VA home loan program includes renovation loans!

2022 Conforming Loan Limits

Did you know conforming loan limits in California are higher in 2022? Way higher!

The Federal Housing Finance Agency recently announced that the new 2022 Conforming Loan Limit for California is $647,200.

Update Mortgage Guidelines January 2022

Some not-so-good news about second homes and conforming high-balance loans. The fees charged by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for doing a second home mortgage and a high-balance mortgage have gone up.

In the case of second homes, they’ve gone way up at higher LTV’s. For more information check out this great article from Mortgage News Daily.

Economic Calendar For January 2022

Here we cover the daily economic events that might impact mortgage rates. After the report comes out we’ll update the post with that information and comment on if there is a potential impact on the Mortgage-Backed Securities market and consumer mortgage rates.

To start things off we have:

ISM Manufacturing report
ADP Employment
ISM Non-Manufacturing PMI
BLS Employment report

Friday – January 28th:

CORE PCE Inflation: The CORE PCE Inflation report was a tad bit stronger this month (4.9% vs 4.7%). January 2022 mortgage rates remained stable heading into the weekened.

Thursday – January 27th:

Unemployment Claims: This week’s Unemployment Claims report came in at 260,000 and continuing claims came in at 1,675,000.
Durable Goods: The Durable Goods report came in weaker than expected. The report showed a decline of -0.9% and expectations were for a -0.5% decline. January 2022 mortgage rates were not impacted by the report.

Wednesday – January 26th:

MBA Purchase Index: The MBA Purchase Index came in at 300.1.
MBA Refinance Index: The MBA Refinance Index came in at 1989.4.

Monday – January 24th:

Markit Manufacturing PMI: The Markit Manufacturing PMI report came in at 55.0 and expectations were for 56.7. Last month the report came in at 57.7.

Thursday – January 20th:

Unemployment Claims: This week’s Unemployment Claims report came in at 286,000 and continuing claims came in at 1,635,000.
Philly Fed Business Index: Expectations were for a reading of 20.0 and the reading came in at 23.2.

Wednesday – January 19th:

MBA Purchase Index: The MBA Purchase Index came in at 305.7.
MBA Refinance Index: The MBA Refinance Index came in at 2276.3.

Friday – January 14th:

Retail Sales: The Retail Sales report showed a decline of 1.9% (the market was expecting a flat report).

Thursday – January 13th:

Unemployment Claims: This week’s Unemployment Claims report came in at 230,000 and continuing claims came in at 1,559,000.

Wednesday – January 12th:

MBA Purchase Index: The MBA Purchase Index came in at 283.4.
MBA Refinance Index: The MBA Refinance Index came in at 2349.8.
CPI: The CPI reading came in at 7.0% and market expectations were 7.0%. Core CPI came in at 5.5% and the market was expecting a reading of 5.4%

Friday – January 7th:

Employment Report: Market expectations are for 4000,000 jobs created however the report came in weaker than expected (199,000). There was no impact to January 2022 mortgage rates post report.

Thursday – January 6th:

Unemployment Claims: This week’s Unemployment Claims report came in at 207,000 and continuing claims came in at 1,754,000.

Wednesday – January 5th:

MBA Purchase Index: The MBA Purchase Index came in at 277.3.
MBA Refinance Index: The MBA Refinance Index came in at 2351.3.
ADP National Employment Report: The market anticipated the ADP Employment Report to come in at 400,000 jobs created however the report showed 807,000 jobs were created. The strong jobs report negatively impacted January 2022 mortgage rates.

Tuesday – January 4th:

ISM Manufacturing PMI: The ISM report came in weaker than expected (58.7 vs 60.0) which is usually good news for bond and mortgage rates. However this time it wasn’t and January 2022 mortgage rates moved higher post report.

January 2022 Mortgage Rates In California – Average

We’ll update this section as we move further into January however to start off the month we’re seeing the following averages.

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate is 3.00%.
The average 20-year fixed mortgage rate is 2.75%
The average 15-year fixed rate is 2.375%.

This is an average of the January 2022 mortgage rates of everyone we’re seeing; from less than perfect credit to excellent credit. Please keep in mind that mortgage rates adjust daily; sometimes multiple times during the day. For a mortgage quote specific to your situation please be sure to contact us directly.

Mortgage-Backed Securities & Treasury Snapshot

January 24th – January 31st:

Mortgage-Backed Security UMBS 2.5 started trading at the 99.86 level and the UMBS 3.0 coupon started at the 102.22 level. The 10y Treasury yield was at the 1.77% level.

At the end of the month, Mortgage-Backed Security UMBS 2.5 was at the 99.80 level and the UMBS 3.0 coupon was nearing the 102.11 level. The 10y Treasury yield was at the 1.78% level.

January 17th – January 21st:

Mortgage-Backed Security UMBS 2.5 started trading at the 99.72 level and the UMBS 3.0 coupon started at the 102.22 level. The 10y Treasury yield was at the 1.79% level.

At the end of the week, Mortgage-Backed Security UMBS 2.5 was at the (pending) level and the UMBS 3.0 coupon was nearing the 102.09 level. The 10y Treasury yield was at the 1.77% level.

January 10th – January 14th:

Mortgage-Backed Security UMBS 2.5 started trading at the 100.44 level and the UMBS 3.00 coupon started at the 102.75 level. The 10y Treasury yield was at the 1.77% level.

At the end of the week, Mortgage-Backed Security UMBS 2.5 was at the 99.86 level and the UMBS 3.0 coupon was nearing the 102.22 level. The 10y Treasury yield was at 1.79% level.

January 3rd – January 7th:

Mortgage-Backed Security UMBS 2.0 started trading at the 99.44 level and the UMBS 2.5 coupon started at the 101.81 level. The 10y Treasury yield was at the 1.56% level.

At the end of the week, Mortgage-Backed Security UMBS 2.0 was at the 97.94 level and the UMBS 2.5 coupon was nearing the 100.56 level. The 10y Treasury yield was at the 1.76% level.