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By Kristin Myers, Editor-in-Chief

What's Happening Today

Good morning! It's Kristin with your daily morning digest.

Rising mortgage rates are proving a deterrent to borrowers, particularly for those looking to refinance. Data today from the Mortgage Bankers Association showed mortgage applications declined 8.1% last week from the week prior, largely because of refinancing activity but also among homebuyers. Mortgage rates are only going to increase throughout the year as the Federal Reserve is expected to hike rates six times to help fight inflation. Rising rates will make borrowing money to purchase a home more expensive.

Meanwhile, sales of newly built homes, typically viewed as a lagging indicator of demand, fell 2% last month and 6.2% from a year ago, indicating that the housing boom is easing. Home prices have surged over the past two years, thanks to low mortgage rates and low inventories, making homeownership an increasingly difficult and expensive endeavor for many.

Stocks are also falling today as investors weigh the possibility of more aggressive interest rate hikes in the future. Oil prices have been on the rise, stirring up concerns that gas prices, which have been on the decline, could make an about-face and march higher again. Several states are considering or have already enacted gas tax relief measures after Russia's invasion of Ukraine triggered sharp price increases at the pump.

And there may be bumpy times ahead for those with debt if the government doesn't extend the federal student loan repayment pause, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said Tuesday. Economists predict that many borrowers with federal student loans will fall behind not only on student loans, but on other debt when repayment relief ends in May.

The pandemic-era forbearance, which was only meant to be temporary, eliminated interest on federal student loans and allowed people to skip payments altogether. Some 37 million borrowers with so-called direct federal loans received the relief.

- Kristin

Editors' Picks

Rising Rates Curb Mortgage, Refinancing Applications (The Balance)

Trouble Ahead for Borrowers if Student Loan Pause Ends (The Balance)

Oil Price Rise 'Trickles Down to Everything,' Even Your Potato Salad To Go (The Wall Street Journal)

Does Credit Affect Car Insurance? (The Balance)

The 'Great Retirement' Disconnect That Puzzles US Economists (Bloomberg)

How Long Do You Have Health Insurance After Leaving a Job? (The Balance)

Budgeting for Kids: How To Teach It and Why It Matters (The Balance)

Looking for Money Games for Kids? Here's Our List of the Best (The Balance)

Off the Charts

If there's a silver lining to the sharp uptick in mortgage rates, it might be the beginning of some balance in the residential real estate market, a new poll suggests. That's because for the first time in over a year, more respondents planned to sell than buy a home in the next 12 months, according to a survey by Morning Consult.

Number of the Day

18 - That's how many state legislatures are considering (or have already enacted) gas tax relief after the Ukraine war triggered sharp price increases at the pump.

Season 2 of the "Money Confidential" podcast is back with "Taxes in Ten," a six-episode mini-season covering your top tax questions. Host and nationally recognized money expert, Stefanie O'Connell Rodriguez, is teaming up with The Balance's very own Editor-in-Chief, Kristin Myers, as well as Caleb Silver, Editor-in-Chief of Investopedia, to talk about everything from doing your own taxes to the specific tax considerations of different life stages. You can listen now to "Taxes in Ten."