The Tariff Ruling You Didn’t Know Could Impact Mortgage Rates

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Read time: ~5 minutes

Rates ended LOWER compared to last week, and volatility was LOW. Rates are in the low-6% range for most loan types without paying discount points. Paying discount points can get you in the high 5’s.

The Tariff Ruling You Didn’t Know Could Impact Mortgage Rates

Last Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court dealt President Trump a rare rebuke, ruling 6-3 that he didn’t have the authority to impose sweeping global tariffs under a 1977 emergency powers law. It’s a decision with implications stretching far beyond trade policy.

So why should real estate agents and mortgage lenders care?

Tariffs are basically taxes on imported goods, and when they’re slapped on big categories like lumber, steel, and appliances, builders and manufacturers often pass those higher costs along to consumers. The result is higher construction costs and more expensive homes overall. In 2025, aggressive tariff expansion was widely blamed for adding upward pressure on prices and inflation.

Inflation matters for housing because it’s one of the key forces the Federal Reserve watches when setting interest rates. Higher inflation → higher expected mortgage rates. Lower inflation or the expectation of lower future inflation → more room for the Fed to pause or cut. With some of the prior tariff increase invalidated, that inflation pressure could ease a bit (or at least slow its growth) which can indirectly take some 🔥🔥 off mortgage rates over time.

On Friday, markets actually reacted pretty favorably to the news. Stocks ended the day higher and mortgage rates pulled back a tiny bit as markets priced in long-term inflation improvement based on the decision. What this decision may have done is set a new, lower ceiling on where rates could move. I’ll take it 💪

Prices always go up much faster than come down. I think everybody sees that when they get groceries or monitor gas prices. It’s safe to assume this decision won’t outright reverse inflation, but it does ease inflation tailwinds.

A Senior Property Tax Freeze That’s Getting Attention

One big theme in the last few years has been the staggering increase in property taxes around the country. Kreg and I fielded calls from past clients just last week looking to see if refinancing makes sense because their property taxes have spiked $100-$200 a month.

My home state of Kentucky might have a potential solution to help a pocket of the population avoid any further increases.

Kentucky’s lawmakers have written Senate Bill 51, a proposal that could put a freeze on property tax increases for homeowners 65 and older. If SB 51 clears both chambers of the legislature and voters approve it, this would become a constitutional amendment voters decide on in the 2027 ballot.

Instead of seniors watching their property tax bill balloon as valuations climb, SB 51 would lock in the assessed value of their home once they turn 65 (or when they buy it, if that happens after age 65). For example: if a home is worth $200,000 at age 65 and later appreciates to $300,000, the tax would still be based on that original $200,000 value.

Supporters, including myself, love this idea. Many seniors are on fixed incomes. SB 51 would protect them against forced selling due to rising taxes.

Housingwire noted that property taxes are the main revenue source for schools, fire, police, ambulances, etc. If they freeze valuations for a large group of homeowners, that funding would need to shift elsewhere.

Unfortunately, current valuations (and by design property taxes) have already skyrocketed. According to Construction Coverage, between 2022 and 2024, property taxes jumped 13.7%. Additionally, while the valuation of a senior’s home is frozen, that doesn’t mean the tax rate is frozen. So in theory, property taxes could still increase over time.

In a lot of ways, Kentucky could be the guinea pig for the rest of the country proving whether senior property tax freezes are a homeowner win without blowing a hole in local funding.

5-Year Low on All-Cash Home Purchases

According to a new Redfin housing market report, just 29 % of U.S. homebuyers paid all cash in December 2025, lowest since 2020.

This matters because it signals a cooling of the pandemic-era bidding wars where cash was king. As mortgage rates eased back toward the low-6% range and competition softened (thanks in part to a buyer’s market with far more sellers than buyers) buyers don’t have to pay cash to win anymore.

For agents, this means your clients who do need financing aren’t as disadvantaged as in recent years, and you can lean into education around competitive mortgage-backed offers. For mortgage professionals, the decline in cash deals is a good reminder that there’s renewed demand for lending products, especially conventional and VA loans, even as FHA usage sits near a multiyear low.

In short: cash buyers aren’t gone, but traditional financing is firmly back in play, and the market is adjusting accordingly.

From Views to $190M: How Wilson Leung Turned Content into 150+ Clients in 2025

Everyone is posting. Very few are converting.

In 2025, Wilson Leung, known as “Bay Area Wilson”, closed $190,000,000 in sales volume, serving 150+ clients, powered by a content strategy that builds trust at scale and drives inbound opportunities.

In this exclusive Masterclass, Wilson will break down:

• How he positioned himself as the go-to authority in his local market

• The exact types of educational content that attract ready-to-act buyers and sellers

• His repeatable video structure that builds trust before the first call

• How he turns comments and DMs into signed agreements

• The backend systems that convert attention into consistent production

• The real metrics he tracks — and what he completely ignores

• How to stay consistent without burning out

You will walk away with:

• A clear, implementable content strategy for your market

• A plug-and-play framework for high-converting videos

• A conversion roadmap from social media to signed client

• Confidence to show up without feeling salesy

• A new understanding of how authority compounds

If you’ve been creating content but not seeing business… this will show you the missing link.

Instagram Reels from the Week

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Don’t hesitate to reach out if you need anything at all. Have a wonderful week!