There's already been a considerable softening in housing demand which preceded the recent rise in mortgage rates. Which leads me to believe that the weakness at a minimum will continue, and may likely accelerate.

Despite the gradual rise in mortgage rates over the last two months, housing starts were actually up in September highlighting the resiliency of the housing market, ... As a matter of fact, housing directly contributed to real GDP growth of 19 percent in the first quarter of the year and 23 percent in the second quarter.

As long as housing prices don't go down, consumers have more equity they can borrow against. If mortgage rates go up another 1.25 or 1.5 percent and pierce 7 percent -- watch out. That's when the housing bubble bursts and consumers would cut back on spending a lot.

Our mortgage rates will skyrocket,

A good measure of debts can help you in achieving your goals. However, an over dosage can produce nasty problems in the future...

If you are lagging behind in your housing loan payments due to some financial reasons, do not avoid the problem and call up your bank to negotiate the payment terms...