How a Higher Fed Rate Affects Your Finances

How a Higher Fed Rate Affects Your Finances
Credit cards as seen in Orlando, Fla., on July 1, 2021. John Raoux/AP Photo
The Associated Press
Updated:

Record-low mortgages are long gone. Credit card rates will likely rise. So will the cost of an auto loan. Savers may finally see a noticeable return.

The unusually large three-quarter point hike in its benchmark short-term rate that the Federal Reserve announced on June 15 won’t, by itself, have a huge effect on most Americans’ finances. But combined with earlier rate hikes and additional large increases to come, economists and investors foresee the fastest pace of rate increases since 1989.