The federal funds rate, the rate that lenders charge each other on overnight loans, stays at 5.25 percent. That means our consumer interest rates should hold steady, too.

Ben Bernanke and his Federal Open Market Committee colleagues said, in a very brief post-meeting statement, that part of the reason they took no action for the second straight month is because economic growth is being tamped down by "a cooling of the housing market."

The panel also said, though, that it "judges some inflation risks remain." To me, that's Fedspeak for "we're hedging our bets when it comes to the Oct. 24-25 meeting."

But you probably should check out Holden Lewis' translation of the statement. As Bankrate.com's mortgage writer, he's been deciphering FOMC language for a long time and I think he actually enjoys it!