The boosters to both were more lending activity and higher interest rates, while the 9% drop in trading revenue took a sizable toll on the top and bottom lines. That broad uptrend heated up, in fact, in the latter part of 2017, when rising inflation finally forced the Fed to concede three to four interest rate increases were in the cards for the foreseeable future. When the average 30-year mortgage rate reaches 5%, a recent Redfin survey suggests that more than a fourth of people interested in buying a home would likely rethink their plans .