Articles Tagged With: Interest Rate Trends

December 8, 2016

Mortgage Rate Trends: Lower

Mortgage rate numbers have fallen a bit since our last report. The current upward trend has seen some corrections, but Wednesday’s lower rates are inspired by overseas economic developments. Specifically, the European Central Bank(ECB) is set to make an important announcement about tapering-an issue that was a major spoiler in mortgage loan interest rates at home in years past. The ECB announcement has no direct connection to the daily FHA or conventional mortgage rate, but investor behavior often does, and that’s what happened on Wednesday. Investors are placing their money where they anticipate it will do the most good depending on whether the investor believes tapering will happen soon or not. The details of those investment strategies are unimportant for our purposes here; suffice it to say that investor behavior | more...

November 30, 2016

Mortgage Rate Trends: Slightly Higher

By Joe Wallace

Were giving additional time for mortgage rate trends this week in light of the sharply higher movement and attempts at recovery weve seen in recent days. Since our last report, mortgage rates have moved higher once more, but overall the best execution numbers are roughly about in the same range as mentioned in our last report. There are a variety of reasons for Wednesdays upward turn for rates. One factor is overseas economic news related to the OPEC deal, which in and of itself might serve to put some upward pressure on rates depending on investor reaction to those developments. However, the OPEC situation combined with domestic inflation fears related to the incoming President and his administration serves to dump more fuel on the fire. These two factors are cited | more...

November 16, 2016

Mortgage Loan Interest Rate Trends: Sharply Higher

By Joe Wallace

Since the election, mortgage rates have been on the move, and this week has seen a sharp increase in rates that we haven’t experienced in some time. In fact, rates are the highest they’ve been all year. It’s unclear at this point whether this is a short term reaction to current events, or if this indicates a longer-term trend. 30-year fixed rate conventional mortgages did something they haven’t done in a very long time-they broke into the four percent range, with a best execution 4.0% for the most well-qualified borrowers. Rates have flirted with the bottom end of the four percent range in the recent past, but managed to stay below four percent for a very respectable length of time. FHA mortgage loan interest rates are now at a best-execution | more...

November 11, 2016

Mortgage Rate Trends: Sharply Higher Post-Election

By Joe Wallace

Mortgage loan interest rates are not tied to election results. However, investor reaction to major events that have economic implications-and the 2016 Presidential election is definitely one of those-can and often does result in changes in mortgage loan rates. We won’t speculate or editorialize on the outcome of the 2016 election, that’s beyond the scope of this report. However, in the wake of election night, we have seen markets react sharply to both the results and the aftermath. On election night alone, the Dow fell dramatically after hours, with recovery the next day. This is a common knee-jerk reaction in the marketplace under such circumstances. What’s important for borrowers to know? At the moment we are in an upward trend for mortgage loan interest rates. Investor reaction to the election | more...

November 7, 2016

Mortgage Rate Trends: Improving Slightly

By Joe Wallace

Mortgage loan interest rates are not directly tied to things like scheduled economic data releases. Friday’s job report, for example, is not directly associated with rate movements, but investor reaction to such reports can and often does influence mortgage rates. The usual rule of thumb is, in general, what is bad for the economy often benefits interest rates. So when you get good news (or at least, better news) in a job report, you could reasonably expect conditions to be favorable to higher mortgage rates assuming you use that rule of thumb. But sometimes that rule won’t apply for one reason or another, and that was the case on Friday when mortgage rates improved slightly even though the jobs data was stronger than some thought it might be. In this | more...

October 21, 2016

Mortgage Rate Trends: Recovering

By Joe Wallace

Mortgage rate watchers were paying close attention on Thursday to see what the European Central Bank (ECB) might announce that could influence investor behavior in markets affecting mortgage interest rates. Fears of higher rates on Thursday were out to rest (for now) thanks to the ECB’s lack of movement on tapering off the European version of quantitative easing or QE. Our sources point to this as a big reason Thursday could have been another “spoiler” day for rates in the short term. To be sure, the ECB isn’t the only thing that has the potential to affect rates, but it was the biggest thing to watch on Thursday. QE and the Fed’s handling of it was responsible for influencing many ups and downs in the U.S. a few years ago. | more...

October 19, 2016

Mortgage Interest Rates Recover Slightly

By Joe Wallace

Interest rates for mortgage loans improved in a small way for the second day after a prolonged “losing streak” that managed to push conventional loans out of a a previous range and into a single, higher number and FHA mortgage loan interest rates out of their single-number best execution territory. 30-year fixed rate conventional mortgages are, best execution, at or near 3.625%, with their previous range being (depending on the lender) between 3.5% and 3.625%. FHA mortgage loan rates are now in a range between 3.25% and 3.5% best execution at the time of this writing. Best execution rates listed here assume ideal conditions including an extremely well-qualified borrower with outstanding FICO scores and loan repayment/credit history. Your experience may vary, and best execution rates are not available to all | more...

October 17, 2016

Mortgage Loan Rates: Friday Bounce

By Joe Wallace

In our last report, we noted that mortgage loan rates had made some improvement, but the very next day we saw rates bouncing to highs not seen in several months-a move that not only affected conventional mortgages, but also served to push FHA mortgage loan interest rates out of their long-held comfort zone and into a new range. Some market watchers noted that the move higher didn’t begin until later in the day on Friday, which could have resulted in some lenders failing to change or “reprice” on that day. Depending on how things go on Monday, that could mean higher numbers for some lenders who didn’t reprice already. That means those contemplating their options when it comes to locking in a mortgage loan interest rate commitment with their lender | more...

October 14, 2016

Mortgage Rate Trends: Recovery

By Joe Wallace

After ten days of no improvement, upward pressure on interest rates finally broke on Thursday, but some market watchers are not ready to declare that day’s respite from higher numbers a decisive victory. In fact, some say this could be a resting moment before rates continue to push upward. Some industry professionals are using the word “lock” quite a bit in public statements aimed at those who haven’t yet made an interest rate lock commitment with their lenders and are within a month to two months of closing. It’s hard to argue with their logic, and rates have been low for quite some time. Is the current trend just a short term development or do we have a new range of rates to look forward to in the coming months? | more...

October 3, 2016

Mortgage Loan Rate Trends: Mixed

By Joe Wallace

Mortgage loan interest rates closed mixed on Friday, gaining back some ground after a couple of days of slightly higher movement. Overall, last week was a bit of a tug-of-war, but on Friday best execution rates are still reported at levels we’ve seen all week, with minor ups and downs likely being reflected in closing costs rather than actual rate changes depending on the lender. 30-year fixed rate conventional mortgages ended Friday at 3.375%, best execution. Market watchers noted on Friday that some lenders marked up, some marked down, and it’s likely that some also stayed the same from Thursday. Bond market activity is a player in the Friday numbers, but how that factors into the week ahead remains to be seen. FHA mortgage loan fixed interest rates remain in | more...