Dive Brief:

• An increase in U.S. interest rates could lead to higher mortgage rates, but the Federal Reserve is “unlikely” to move in that  direction until later in the year, Fed Chair Janet Yellen said Wednesday.

• Still, by dropping the word “patient” from its plans for a rate hike, the Fed has opened to the door to raising interest rates for the first time in over seven years.

• For the housing sector, a rate increase could lead to a decline in the number of potential homebuyers who would apply for mortgages.

Dive Insight:

The financial crisis had a major impact on interest rates, as the Fed tried to bolster the economy by maintaining a low federal fund rate—between zero and a quarter of a percentage point. This seven-year period was the longest stretch of such low rates in more than 50 years.

However, the Fed said it now wants to get rates back to normal levels, which would be between an estimated 3.5% and 4%, according to Yellen.

It’s possible that the Fed’s hint at a future rate increase will spur homebuying this spring, as consumers rush to lock in today’s low mortgage rates before the Fed makes any changes.