INFLATION, ONCE UNLEASHED, IS DIFFICULT AND PAINFUL TO REIN BACK IN: The Fed just dashed hopes for lower mortgage rates. What homebuyers need to know.

So far, the MBS roll-off has lagged the Fed’s $35 billion cap because of the slower housing market. They’ve been hovering at $15 billion per month, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said after the Fed’s policy meeting last week.

But if sales accelerate in the spring-summer buying season, homebuyers could see an uptick in mortgage rates. The more likely scenario, though, is that mortgage rates just won’t drop, financial and real estate experts said.

“Lower mortgage rates continue to feel more out of reach in this perfect storm of persistent inflation, rising treasury yields, and the Fed’s continued run-off of its MBS holdings,” Orenstein said.

Plus: Fed may need to hold rates steady all year, Kashkari says.