Bank of America Corp. has lowered its prime-lending rate to 7.75 percent from 8.25 percent, effective Tuesday.
One would be naive to think BofA is the only one to have done this. All the major institutions have done this or soon will.
I am as ignorant on these topics as the next guy, but isn’t prime rate the rate at which the bank lends short-term money to credit cards and such rather than mortgage?
The prime rate is typically used DIRECTLY to set HELOC rates, and usually contractually tied to the rate for a HELOC.
Credit card rates are not strictly tied to prime rate and are not set in stone. Banks may change the rate unilaterally, with some restrictions regarding notice to the customer. However, CC rates tend to track the prime rate as well.
