Federal Reserve pauses interest rates after 15 months of hikes at its policy meeting last week for the first time since March 2022.

The last 15 months saw the sharpest series of rate hikes in 40 years — radically reshaping markets and the economy.

The benchmark 30-yr fixed mortgage rate went from roughly 3% at the beginning of 2022, to more than 7.5% last fall, drastically reducing affordability and slamming the brakes on home sales activity.

See current national mortgage rate averages on our sister site at JoeMetzler.com/rates