Just last week mortgage rates were at a high for the year, but there’s been lots of news this week out of China, Greece, and even the halting of trading on the NYSE, which have caused rates to drop. What most of the articles fail to cover is the actual reason that those things have an impact. The good news is, while most of us don’t think in these terms, it’s actually not that complicated. When global investors get nervous, they flee to bonds. In particular, U.S. bonds. Because of increased competition, investor have to settle for lower yields. And since they’re getting lower yields from bonds, mortgage rates have to drop to remain competitive. And there you have it. Time to lock in! (Until the next completely unpredictable change).