Will May 2024 be the month mortgage rates stabilize? Unfortunately, no one truly knows, which means homeowners and homebuyers should be vigilant when it comes to locking in rates. Especially those that are set to close within 15-20 days. If we do see an improvement compared to April, that would be a welcome turn of events when compared to the last few months.
Opportunities And Risks For May 2024 Mortgage Rates
If the market has hit a high point, it won’t take much to reverse the trend. First up will be the employment report and then the CPI report. If the market reacts favorably to these reports, we may see May 2024 mortgage rates move lower.
As it has been for the last few years, the risk of mortgage rates moving higher is still very high. A strong employment report, along with a higher-than-expected CPI report, could send mortgage rates to new highs.
K.O. Home Loan Solutions May 2024 Mortgage Rate Forecast
Here are our latest May 2024 mortgage rate forecasts for California:
- 30-year fixed rates below 6.75%
- 20-year fixed rates below 6.50%
- 15-year fixed rates below 6.25%
K.O Home Solutions May 2024 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, we believe there will be opportunities to lock a mortgage rate at or below these levels throughout May.
Mortgage Rate And Payment Chart
Here is a quick reference guide to May 2024 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 | $305,000 | 6.00% | $1,828.63 |
| 30-year fixed | $405,000 | 6.00% | $2,428.18 |
| 30-year fixed | $505,000 | 6.00% | $3,027.73 |
| 30-year fixed | $605,000 | 6.00% | $3,627.28 |
Important disclosure: The above is not a mortgage rate quote nor 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 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.
K.O. Home Loan Solution’s Mortgage Calculator
Using a mortgage calculator to determine your monthly payment is essential to buying a home in California or refinancing a current mortgage. Our free mortgage calculator can help you determine what you can afford.
With our online mortgage calculator, you can also factor in your property tax and annual homeowner’s insurance into your monthly mortgage payment (as well as your HOA dues, if applicable).
Our California mortgage calculator is free and easy to use.
Our mortgage calculator is especially helpful for those wanting to include their property taxes and insurance in their monthly mortgage payment. If you have any questions about our California mortgage calculator, please don’t hesitate to ask.
Economic Calendar For May 2024
Here, we cover the daily economic events that might impact May 2024 mortgage rates. After the report comes out, we’ll update the post with that information and comment on whether there is a potential impact on the Mortgage-Backed Securities market and consumer mortgage rates.
To start things off, we have the following report:
- ISM Manufacturing report
- ADP Employment
- ISM Non-Manufacturing PMI
- BLS Employment report
Thursday – May 30th
- Unemployment Claims: Weekly unemployment claims came in at 219,000, and continued claims came in at 1,791,000.
Wednesday – May 29th
- MBA Purchase Index: The MBA Purchase Index came in at 138.4.
- MBA Refinance Index: The MBA Refinance Index came in at 463.8.
Thursday – May 23rd
- Unemployment Claims: Weekly unemployment claims came in at 215,000, and continued claims came in at 1,794,000.
Wednesday – May 22nd
- MBA Purchase Index: The MBA Purchase Index came in at 140.0.
- MBA Refinance Index: The MBA Refinance Index came in at 536.9.
Thursday – May 16th
- Unemployment Claims: Weekly unemployment claims came in at 222,000, and continued claims came in at 1,794,000.
Wednesday – May 15th
- MBA Purchase Index: The MBA Purchase Index came in at 141.7.
- MBA Refinance Index: The MBA Refinance Index came in at 499.9
- CORE CPI: The month-over-month CORE CPI report came in at 0.3%, and that’s exactly what the market was expecting. May 2024 mortgage rates were stable post-report.
Thursday – May 9th
- Unemployment Claims: Weekly unemployment claims came in at 231,000, and continued claims came in at 1,785,000.
Wednesday – May 8th
- MBA Purchase Index: The MBA Purchase Index came in at 144.2.
- MBA Refinance Index: The MBA Refinance Index came in at 477.5.
Friday – May 3rd
- Employment Report: The market expected the jobs report to show 243,000 jobs created, but the report showed only 175,000. The unemployment rate came in at 3.9% (the market expected 3.8%), and earnings came in at a 0.2% increase (the market was expecting a 0.3% increase). May 2024 mortgage rates moved lower after the report.
Thursday – May 2nd
- Challenger Layoffs: The Challenger Layoff report came in at 64,789, which is lower than last month’s report of 90,309.
- Unemployment Claims: Weekly unemployment claims came in at 208,000, and continued claims came in at 1,774,000.
Wednesday – May 1st
- ISM Manufacturing Prices Paid: The forecast called for a 50.0 reading; however, the report came in at 49.2.
- MBA Purchase Index: The MBA Purchase Index came in at 141.7.
- MBA Refinance Index: The MBA Refinance Index came in at 456.9.
- ADP Jobs Report: The ADP Jobs report came in at 192,000. May 2024 mortgage rates did not react to the report and remained stable post-report.
- JOLTS Report: The JOLTS report showed 8,448,000 job openings, whereas the market was expecting the report to show 8,690,000.
Mortgage-Backed Securities & Treasury Snapshot
Here are the two-week opening and closing levels of Mortgage-Backed Securities and the 10-year Treasury Yield.
May 1st – May 15th:
Mortgage-Backed Security UMBS 4.5 started trading at the 92.29 level, and the UMBS 5.0 coupon started at the 94.87 level. The 10y Treasury yield was at the 4.683% level.
At the end of the week, Mortgage-Backed Security UMBS 4.5 was at the 94.94 level, and the UMBS 5.0 coupon was nearing the 97.42 level. The 10y Treasury yield was at the 4.34% level.
May 16th – May 31st:
Mortgage-Backed Security UMBS 4.5 started trading at the 94.63 level, and the UMBS 5.0 coupon started at the 97.05 level. The 10y Treasury yield was at the 4.36% level.
At the end of the week, Mortgage-Backed Security UMBS 4.5 was at the 93.63 level, and the UMBS 5.0 coupon was nearing the 96.19 level. The 10y Treasury yield was at the 4.50% level.
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