On January 8, 2026, President Trump signed an executive order directing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to deploy $200 billion in existing conservatorship cash to buy mortgage-backed securities. The goal was blunt: narrow the spread between the 10-year Treasury yield and the 30-year mortgage rate, and push borrowing costs below 6%. For a few weeks, the math worked. By early March 2026, mortgage rates fell below 6% for the first time since 2022. Then the war got in the way.
The Plan and the Payoff
Mortgage rates track the 10-year Treasury, plus a spread that widens when investors demand more compensation to hold prepayment-sensitive housing debt. Trump’s executive order attacked the spread directly by turning the government-sponsored enterprises into a captive buyer. It was a mechanical fix to a mechanical problem, and it delivered. Rates continued easing after a preliminary Iran ceasefire in June, and the spring housing narrative shifted from paralysis to cautious thaw.
Then fighting between the United States, Israel, and Iran resumed in July. The ceasefire, in the words of policymakers watching daily oil flows, completely fell apart. That reversed the entire chain the White House had spent political capital building.
How the War Undid the Bet
WTI crude jumped 9.3% in a single day to $79.20 a barrel on July 13, after Brent had spent the spring above $100 per barrel during the initial Strait of Hormuz closure. The national average gasoline price crossed back above $4.00 per gallon on July 20, up 3.8% in a single week. That fed inflation expectations, which fed the 10-year Treasury, which currently sits at 4.60%, up 0.14% over the past month and near its 12-month high.
Mortgage rates followed. They hit a wartime high of 6.75% on July 13, then eased slightly to a 6.54% to 6.74% range across daily trackers as of July 21, the highest level in nearly a year. Freddie Mac’s official weekly average sits at 6.55% for the week ending July 16. Buyers noticed immediately: Mortgage Bankers Association applications fell 2.7% week-over-week, dipping below last year’s pace, with MBA’s Joel Kan citing higher rates as the driver.
Erika Giovanetti of U.S. News put the causal chain plainly: “Today’s high mortgage rates are a result of the resurgence of the U.S. war in Iran. The Middle East conflict has led to higher oil prices, fueling inflation throughout the economy.” Her conclusion: “mortgage rates will stay high due to the inflationary pressures of the war.”
What Buyers Are Doing Now
Consumer sentiment collapsed to 44.8 in May 2026, down 10.0% from April and well below the 60-point recessionary threshold. Existing home sales dropped to 4.09 million annualized in June, down from 4.19 million in May, keeping the market stuck in the soft zone associated with elevated rates.
Jeremy Holmgren of Zions Bank Mortgage told borrowers to expect continued day-to-day volatility until the geopolitical situation clarifies, advising buyers under contract to consider locking their rate while would-be refinancers hold off.
The Signal to Watch
Zillow still projects rates could drift toward roughly 6.4% by year-end 2026 if the war de-escalates. That is the entire trade. The longer Middle East fighting persists, the more the risk premium embedded in oil, Treasuries, and mortgage spreads compounds. Some economists warn that draining Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s $200 billion cash buffer, effectively their reserve against a future housing downturn, could leave the housing finance system more exposed down the road. The next Freddie Mac weekly survey and the August existing home sales print will show whether the July spike is a blip or the start of a second leg higher.
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