This podcast episode discusses the impact of rising mortgage rates on housing affordability and the potential consequences for the housing market. Mortgage rate increases may lead to a decrease in home sales and housing starts, but home prices could remain protected due to low mortgage rates for homeowners and a limited supply of homes for sale. In a scenario with sustained high mortgage rates, home sales may stabilize but prices could fall if inventory increases. Long-term mortgage rates may decrease due to a compression in the spread between treasury rates and spreads where originators sell mortgages to investors.