As of last Friday, HSH.com reported that mortgage rates had once again dipped back to new record lows. The streak has continued into this week.
According to HSH.com’s latest Weekly Mortgage Rate Radar, rates on two of the most popular types of mortgages eased back even more, breaking new record low territory.
The economic seesaw brought mortgage rates down to new record lows last week.
Two weeks ago, mortgage rates flared higher thanks to a warmer set of economic data. Last week, that increase “was cut off at the knees” by a softer-than-expected fourth quarter GDP report and a Federal Reserve outlook that left a lot to be desired, explained Keith Gumbinger, vice president of HSH.com, in the latest Market Trends newsletter. Read the rest of this entry »
In what was a surprise to market observers, the economy added 243,000 jobs in January, the most in nine months. The unemployment rate had an impressive showing of its own, falling to 8.3 percent.
Estimates for the January report varied. While a group of economists surveyed by MarketWatch predicted 121,000 new hires last month, HSH.com expected 180,000.
The Federal Reserve kicked off its new strategy of clearer communications at the close of January’s Open Market Committee meeting last Wednesday afternoon. With just a few words, plus some charts (page 3), the Fed now expects to keep interest rates “extraordinarily low” for a period up to 18 months longer than the mid-2013 estimate previously in place. Also for the first time, the Fed officially revealed more explicitly that it will use an inflation target to help control monetary policy.
Low and stable mortgage rates and a modestly improving economy are starting to produce positive effects on the nation’s housing market. While starting from extraordinarily low levels, and though improvement is still of course tenuous, there have been accumulating signs of improvement for months.
If the economy can continue to nudge forward for a while longer without some new or already-known catastrophe to derail it, we just might have ourselves a housing market worth talking about when spring rolls around. Read the rest of this entry »
Over the last few days we’ve had an influx of good comments come into the blog. I enlisted Keith Gumbinger, vice president of HSH.com and 25-year observer of the mortgage and real estate markets, to answer some of the recent questions we received.
1. The first question comes from Rick who commented on the post “Update 1: HARP receives one year extension—what’s the point?” Read the rest of this entry »
Sometimes one basis point can make all the difference.
According to HSH.com’s latest Weekly Mortgage Rate Radar, the average rate for conforming 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell by 1 basis point (0.01 percent) to 4.02 percent, a tiny drop that was nonetheless sufficient to produce yet another new record low. The average rate for conforming 5/1 hybrid ARMs increased by 1 basis point, closing the Wednesday-to-Tuesday wraparound weekly survey at an average of 2.97 percent, just above last week’s record low. Read the rest of this entry »
With the political season heating up, it should come as no surprise that the public is increasingly tying housing matters to the next election.
What may come as a surprise is the level of opposition to the mortgage interest deduction and other traditional write-offs.
If you buy apparel from “big and tall” clothing stores, you’re used to paying more and having less to choose from. “Regular guys,” on the other hand, benefit from a wider selection of products and more competition between retailers.
Jumbo mortgage refinancing is the same way — a jumbo loan is harder to find and more expensive than smaller Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or FHA loans. Read the rest of this entry »
Out with the old, in with the new. The start of a new year always seems to bring along aspirations of improvement. Whether that’s losing weight or refinancing your mortgage, new year’s resolutions are often short lived and quickly forgotten.
While your new and improved diet may not be lasting as long as you had hoped, optimism surrounding a better year in the mortgage and real estate markets is holding strong (at least for now).
HSH.com's daily blog focuses on the latest developments in the mortgage and housing markets. Our mission is to relate how changes in mortgage rates and housing policy, as well as the latest financial news, impacts consumers, homebuyers and industry insiders alike. Our 30-plus years of experience in the mortgage industry gives us an edge as we break down the latest changes in an ever-changing market.
