AUSTIN, Texas (Oct. 30, 2026) - The Fed held rates steady this week, and Austin REALTOR® Sarah Maddali says buyers shouldn't read the decision as either a green light or a stop sign. Maddali, team leader of Serendipity Realty Group at Compass, said the Federal Reserve's Oct. 28 move keeps the federal funds rate at 3.75% to 4% after September's increase, and the next decision won't come until the Fed meets Dec. 8-9, after the Nov. 3 midterm elections.

The Federal Open Market Committee voted 10-2 to hold its target range, with Governor Lisa Cook and Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack dissenting in favor of a quarter-point hike, according to Yahoo Finance. The hold follows the Fed's Sept. 16 quarter-point increase, its first since July 2023.

Mortgage rates tend to track the bond market more than the Fed's short-term rate. The 10-year Treasury yield rose to 5.02% on Oct. 28, according to Yahoo Finance. Freddie Mac's survey put the average 30-year fixed rate at 7.32% for the week of Oct. 22, down from 7.40% a week earlier.

Buyers are still showing up. The Mortgage Bankers Association's weekly survey, as reported by HousingWire, showed purchase applications up 4% for the week ending Oct. 23 but 18% behind last year's pace. Adjustable-rate loans rose to 11.3% of applications, the highest share in more than a year.

"When the Fed holds rates, people ask me if they should wait for December, and the truth is nobody can promise where mortgage rates go next, including me," said Maddali. "What I'd actually do is get fully pre-approved now, have your lender walk you through a fixed loan and an adjustable one side by side, and look hard at the homes that have been sitting, because that's where the negotiating room is. You can't go back later and ask for a price you didn't negotiate."

What Austin home buyers can do this month:
- Get a full pre-approval, not a quick pre-qualification, before the Fed's Dec. 8-9 meeting.
- Ask your lender to compare a fixed and an adjustable-rate loan side by side.
- Watch Freddie Mac's weekly average every Thursday, but don't build your whole plan around one headline.

Sarah's free Austin home buyer and relocation guides are at sarahmaddali.com/links/.

About Serendipity Realty Group
Serendipity Realty Group is an Austin, Texas real estate team led by Sarah Maddali, REALTOR® and Military Relocation Professional (MRP). Since 2016, Sarah and her team have closed 220+ transactions and helped flip 22+ homes around Austin. Serendipity Realty Group is a real estate team affiliated with Compass. Equal Housing Opportunity.

Media contact: Sarah Maddali, Serendipity Realty Group at Compass, 563.650.0452, [email protected]