CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Many expect mortgage rates to drop after the Federal Reserve's interest rate cut, but mortgage rates don't follow those cuts directly .

A more important benchmark is the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasury notes.

That yield reflects what investors demand for locking in money long-term — and mortgage lenders often tie their rates to it.

Inflation, or expectations about future inflation, plays a big role. If investors think inflation will stay high, they'll insist on higher long-term yields. That pushes mortgage rates up, even if short-term Fed rates are falling.

The Fed does have tools that can help lower mortgage rates like buying mortgage-backed securities, or stopping reducing its holdings of them, but they come with risks, like stoking inflation or disrupting parts of

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