Thu, Dec 8 2016, 6:22 PM
Yesterday we discussed the rally in bonds as a function of short-covering . That meant traders were in a defensive position on Tuesday night--bettin...
Thu, Dec 8 2016, 5:42 PM
Mortgage rates were only somewhat higher today, on average, and some lenders were actually right in line with yesterday's offerings. All this despite ...
Wed, Dec 7 2016, 12:24 PM
Profit margins increased for mortgage lenders in the third quarter of 2015. The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) said independent mortgage banks and...
Wed, Dec 7 2016, 9:27 AM
Today is the 75th anniversary of the Japanese attack on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawai’i where 2,403 Americans died and 1,178 were wound...
Wed, Dec 7 2016, 8:57 AM
Mortgage application activity was essentially flat on a seasonally adjusted basis during the week ended December 2 while swinging broadly on a non-sea...
Wed, Dec 7 2016, 8:54 AM
From time to time, we see various financial markets take a "lead-off." Just like in baseball, the lead-offs occur because the base-runner knows whe...
Wed, Dec 7 2016, 5:41 PM
"Big" is a relative term these days, to be sure. In fact, 4.8bps in 10yr yields and 10/32nds in Fannie 3.5 MBS prices isn't too terribly big, but...
Wed, Dec 7 2016, 5:03 PM
Mortgage rates moved moderately lower today, as financial markets positioned themselves for an important announcement from the European Central Bank (...
Tue, Dec 6 2016, 10:30 AM
Home price growth accelerated further in October according to CoreLogic. The company's Home Price Index (HPI) increased 6.7 percent from the prior Oct...
Tue, Dec 6 2016, 9:27 AM
Many years ago, it was a joke in Britain to say that, “the War Office was always preparing for the last war.” To their credit, regulators now often tr...
Tue, Dec 6 2016, 8:47 AM
I generally don't l ike the terms "oversold" (consistent weakness) and "overbought" (consistent strength). I think they lead to false confidence...
Tue, Dec 6 2016, 5:37 PM
Today's bond market trading range was the narrowest since the US presidential election, by far. 10yr yields held inside a paltry 2.9bp range (2.374 t...
Tue, Dec 6 2016, 4:44 PM
Mortgage rates barely budged today, with most lenders offering the exact same quotes as yesterday. While we have seen a few days with similar day-over...
Mon, Dec 5 2016, 12:05 PM
As everyone knows, interest rates shot up immediately in the wake of the November 8 presidential elections, triggered by a sell-off in Treasury bonds....
Mon, Dec 5 2016, 10:06 AM
Access to mortgage credit continued its recent upward trend in November. The Mortgage Bankers Association said on Monday that its Mortgage Credit Avai...
Mon, Dec 5 2016, 9:59 AM
Another piece of the President-elect Donald J. Trump's administration fell into place on Monday with the announcement that former Republican president...
Mon, Dec 5 2016, 9:50 AM
It is probably not the case that this date is celebrated by mortgage bankers from coast to coast, and forget the jokes about it being the “Mortgage Dr...
Mon, Dec 5 2016, 8:52 AM
This week, we'll finally get to see how much of an impact remains to be had for the European Central Bank (ECB) announcement. The ECB conducts their ...
Mon, Dec 5 2016, 5:29 PM
After today, we're left with a clearer picture of the prevailing short-term range in bond markets. The volatile reaction to the weekend's Italian ref...
Mon, Dec 5 2016, 3:34 PM
Mortgage rates were slightly higher today relative to last Friday's levels, leaving them near the 2-year highs seen last Thursday. Volatility continue...
Fri, Dec 2 2016, 9:27 AM
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has now joined the Federal Housing Finance Agency in raising the dollar limits for loans that qualify for FHA...
Fri, Dec 2 2016, 9:24 AM
Plenty of people are on the roads in December, traveling for the holidays. Ever curious about the basic differences between a road, a street, a boulev...
Fri, Dec 2 2016, 8:12 AM
Have you heard the one about the falling knife? And how no one wants to catch it? That's one of the market's favorite analogies for the fear experie...
Fri, Dec 2 2016, 5:17 PM
Let's change up the old fairy tale. Bond markets have been cried wolf on a few recent occasions. In my version of the fairy tale, "crying wolf" is e...
Fri, Dec 2 2016, 4:19 PM
Mortgage rates erased yesterday's losses after today's jobs report, though not necessarily because of it. The Employment Situation (affectionately ref...
Thu, Dec 1 2016, 11:43 AM
Construction spending rose only slightly in October, with residential construction coming in stronger than most other sectors. The Census Bureau said ...
Thu, Dec 1 2016, 10:00 AM
Numbers can be deceiving. U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Julián Castro announced that public housing developments in the U.S. will...
Thu, Dec 1 2016, 8:32 AM
Bond markets begin the day still reeling from yesterday's OPEC-driven rout. We noted in yesterday's closing commentary that yields bounced on an omin...
Thu, Dec 1 2016, 5:44 PM
Bonds began the day in the throes of yesterday's ongoing momentum. There was a bit of a pause during Asian market hours, but European trading quickly...
Thu, Dec 1 2016, 4:02 PM
Mortgage rates spiked abruptly today, bringing them to the highest levels in well over 2 years . The average lender is now quoting conventional 30yr f...
Wed, Nov 30 2016, 10:37 AM
Pending home Sales eked out a 0.1 percent gain in October. The National Association of Realtors® said its Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) barely manag...
Wed, Nov 30 2016, 10:07 AM
Underwriters’ hands are tied in using income from something the Federal Government considers illegal. For example, Washington State had nearly $212 mi...
Wed, Nov 30 2016, 9:48 AM
Yesterday we discussed the positive impact of month-end bond buying. The only problem with month-end buying that occurs on the day before month-e...
Wed, Nov 30 2016, 8:29 AM
Thanksgiving wreaked the usual holiday-related damage on the Mortgage Bankers Association's report of mortgage activity during the week ended November...
Wed, Nov 30 2016, 5:18 PM
Today brought the long-awaited and hotly-anticipated conclusion of a deal among OPEC countries to limit oil production. Constricted supply has one in...
Wed, Nov 30 2016, 4:07 PM
Mortgage rates rose moderately today, bringing them roughly back in line with Monday's levels. For the record, that leaves us in slightly better shape...
Wed, Nov 30 2016, 1:35 PM
Interest rates are, quite naturally, the focus of Freddie Mac's November Outlook. The company's Economic & Housing Research Group looked at the potent...
Wed, Nov 30 2016, 1:25 PM
President-elect Donald J. Trump may have just handed Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae a "get out of jail free" card. Trump has picked Steven Mnuchin to be S...
Tue, Nov 29 2016, 10:54 AM
While it will remain unchanged in 2017, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Federal Reserve Board, and Office of the Comptroller of the C...
Tue, Nov 29 2016, 10:16 AM
It took ten years and change, but national prices as measured by the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller National Index have finally surpassed the previous pre...
Tue, Nov 29 2016, 10:11 AM
From Louisiana comes, “I doubt that HUD will be a high priority for Trump – perhaps it will be like Ronald Reagan’s view. Remember the story that Pres...
Tue, Nov 29 2016, 9:49 AM
The term ' pivot point ' can mean slightly different things depending on your frame of reference and market-watching goals. For our purposes, the lit...
Tue, Nov 29 2016, 5:33 PM
How many ways could bond market weakness have been justified today? Shall I count the ways?
GDP +3.2 vs +3.0 forecast and +2.9 previously
...
Tue, Nov 29 2016, 3:53 PM
Mortgage rate s continued lower today. While the pace of improvement was slightly slower, it was enough to get the average lender rate sheet back to l...
Tue, Nov 29 2016, 1:50 PM
Freddie Mac has certified six companies as meeting its requirements for creating, signing, and storing eNotes , i.e. electronic promissory notes. The ...
Tue, Nov 29 2016, 1:42 PM
The national foreclosure inventory rate, according to Black Knight Financial Services, fell below 1 percent in October for the first time since July 2...
Mon, Nov 28 2016, 11:09 AM
Black Knight Financial Services says that its Home Price Index (HPI) inched up only 0.1 percent from August to September. Monthly appreciation has dec...
Mon, Nov 28 2016, 9:54 AM
Happy birthday to Tina Turner who turned 77 on Saturday. (I doubt if her personal information is at risk after HUD was hacked .) I bet Tina, who is a ...
Mon, Nov 28 2016, 4:51 PM
Remember when 10yr yields spiked from roughly 2.31% to roughly 2.41% in the blink of an eye last Wednesday? That was the day before Thanksgiving, w...
Mon, Nov 28 2016, 3:54 PM
Bond markets were stronger right out of the gate in the overnight session with 10yr yields opening at 2.337 and gaining another bp since then. The re...
