Here is a snapshot of this morning’s bond market:

And here is how lenders are reacting so far:

72 lenders are lowering rate this morning and 17 are raising them. The number of lenders increasing rates will more than likely rise if the market continues it’s current direction.

• The bond market is currently experiencing a rally that started back on April 21st. It is currently trading above it’s trend line, and we expect it to correct itself and come down to the trend line in the near future. It looks like that is already happening today.
• Investors are like to take their profits and run today, in light of how well the market has been doing this week.
• Germany has approved a bailout package, which should ease concern for investors, causing lower demand for U.S. bonds.

All of these items lean towards a not-so-good day for bonds, so therefore, rates. Hope you got your rate locked in yesterday!

Have a great weekend.

Here is this morning’s snapshot of the bond market:

And here is how lenders are reacting as of 8:00am:

So far this morning 30 lenders are lowering rates and only1 lender is raising them.

There are several reasons that the bond market is doing so well this morning.

• 1. The DOW is getting hammere this morning as fears about Europe continue
• 2. Jobless claims spiked, revealing that the economy may not be doing as well as everyone hoped
• 3. Inflation numbers came out and are the lowest they’ve been since 1966 – that is great news for rates

So when you combine a sluggish economy with zero inflation, along with concerns for investors about Europe’s stability, you get an incredible bond rally.

If you have a rate to lock in, now is a great time to do it and take advantage of this opportunity!

Here is a snapshot of the bond market today:

And here is what lenders are doing:

106 lenders are lowering rates this morning and 2 lenders are raising them.

Retail sales were down last month and the30 year bond auction went well. Both of these things are causing the DOW to go down and the bond market to go up.

It’s a GREAT day to lock in your rate!

Good morning. Here is today’s snapshot of the bond market:

And here is what lenders are doing:

72 lenders are lowering rates and 13 lenders are raising them.

• Jobless claims stayed flat – the weak job report is helping rates stay low today.
• All eyes are on the 30 year bond auction tomorrow and the retail sales number. If there is a demand for the 30 year bonds and retail sales are low, that will be  good for rates, and if the opposite is true, rates could increase tomorrow.

Enjoy the sun today!

Here is a snapshot of the bond market today:

And here is how lenders are reacting:

97 lenders are lowering rates and 14 lenders are raising them.

• The 3 year mortgage bonds auction was good yesterday , but not as good as expected. The market will tread lightly today waiting to see how the 10 year auction will go today. If it goes well, that is good for rates, if it doesn’t, expect rates to go up.
• Sellers cut home prices over $25 billion as the tax credit ended April 30th. This is a sign that the Fed may need to continue artifically keeping rates low if the housing market is to improve.

Have a great week.

Here is a snapshot of the bond market this morning:

 And here is how lenders are responding: (Green box means rates are going lower and red box means rates are going higher)

 103 lenders are lowering rates and 7 lenders are currently raising rates.

The economic news is a mixed bag today.

• Approval of the European bailout for Greece means that spending in Europe will be decreasing as they need to tighten their belt.
• At the same time, China’s GDP is increasing, showing signs of inflation, meaning they will more than likely be raising interest rates. That is bad news for the U.S., since investors will want to buy bonds at a higher rate in China, rather than U.S. bonds.
• Inventories for U.S. businesses are rising, as well as sales, showing more signs of an improving economy.

The bond market is still a bit “top heavy” – meaning it has room to come down to it’s trend line. If it breaks through where it started out today, we could have another nice day for rates, otherwise, it is more than likely headed downward to it’s trend line, meaning rates will not improve today.

Late last year, Fannie Mae conducted a national housing survey to check in on attitudes toward housing, especially in light of the current housing downturn. The research project asked more than 3,000 homeowners and renters nationwide, how confident they are about homeownership as an investment, the mortgage process, the housing finance system, their personal finances and the overall economy.

Survey Results

The survey showed that, despite the downturn, Americans continue to value homeownership.

• Nearly two-thirds of respondents said they preferred owning a home to renting (safety and having a positive environment to raise children were the top reasons to own).
• More than 60 percent said they would buy a house if they were going to move.
• Seven out of ten said that buying a home continues to be one of the safest investments available (only 17 percent believe buying stocks is a safe investment).
• Three-quarters of renters believe that owning makes more sense than renting, because it protects them against rent increases and is a good investment over the long term.

At the same time, people are more cautious and recognize the challenges to homeownership.

• About 60 percent said it would be harder to get a mortgage than it was for their parents, (citing poor credit and income as the main obstacles).
• Nearly seven in ten (68 percent) think it will be harder for their children to buy a home.
• Nearly one-quarter of renters say they will wait longer than they had planned to buy a home.
• More than half said they are making personal sacrifices to own their home, with 24 percent saying they are “sacrificing a great deal.”

In addition, a majority of Americans believe in upholding the financial responsibilities of homeownership.

• Nearly nine in ten said they do not believe it is acceptable to stop making mortgage payments on an underwater mortgage.
• Only six percent of homeowners said they had considered stopping their mortgage payments.
• More than half (53 percent) believe homeowners bear the responsibility if they get a home loan they can’t afford.

What We’ve Learned

What we’ve learned from these and other survey results is that even in light of the housing crisis Americans still value homeownership. But they have made a shift to a “new reality” — one that is less willing to take on risk to own a home and more focused on making homeownership a success for the long-term. 

Click here to see the survey.

Here is this morning’s snapshot of the bond market as of 9:00am:

And here is what lenders are doing:

So far this morning 10 lenders are lowering interest rates and 80 are raising them.

There is not really any good news for interest rates today-

• News of a $750 Billion bail out plan to stabilize Greece and the Euro caused the DOW to surge (remember good news for the stock market is bad news for bonds and rates)
• Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced huge losses, which could have implications including possible continuing of tightening credit guidelines.
• There is a $78 million supply of bonds to be auctioned this week – with good news elsewhere, investors may not be as interested to scoop up all of that supply.
• The important economic news to pay attention to this week will be the retail sales numbers coming out later in the week, along with the jobless claims numbers that always come out on Thursdays.

Make it a great week.

The DOW took a nose dive yesterday, plunging 1000 points in a matter of minutes before rebounding back. So far today, we’re still on a rollercoaster ride. Here is a snapshot of the bond market this morning:

And here is how lenders are reacting:

As of 9:00am 43 lenders are lowering interest rates and 51 lenders are raising them.

Fear seems to be the controlling factor as investors don’t trust that Greece won’t still default in spite of the bailout package that was approved yesterday, and the U.S. unemployment numbers gave a mixed message. 290,000 new jobs were created, but the unemployment numbers were up also, to 9.9%, and wages remained flat, meaning employers aren’t paying more.

Until the fear subsides, the market will continue to swing, as investors try to determine where the safest place to put their money is. The bond market is still due to come back down to it’s trend line, which means at some point in the near future we can expect rates to go back up.

Have a great weekend.

Good Morning!

Here is a snapshot of the bond market this morning:

And here is what lenders are doing:

So far this morning 19 lenders are lowering interest rates and 32 lenders are raising them.

A lot of good economic news out that could cause rates to rise:

1. Personal income is up – more than expected

2. Greece has a bailout offer, so DOW is up (when stocks go up, bonds go down which equals higher rates)

3. Personal spending is up (although personal savings is down – people are spending their savings?)

4. Construction spending is up

5. ISM Index (Institute for Supply Management) is up – especially the employment part of the index

Lots more economic news to come out this week – including employment numbers, so stay tuned. More good economic news could mean more pressure on rates to rise.

Have a good week.

DJ