Thu, Dec 2 2021, 11:23 AM
Today, 20211202 (2nd December 2021), is a palindrome in the YYYYMMDD format. That aside, sorry the commentary is a little late this morning: I went ou...
Wed, Dec 1 2021, 4:55 PM
National spending on construction spending rose slightly in October, but for the second month in a row, the increase wasn't driven by the residential ...
Wed, Dec 1 2021, 4:33 PM
Mortgage rates were much lower at the start of business yesterday , but began rising in the afternoon as the bond market lost ground. That same moment...
Wed, Dec 1 2021, 4:32 PM
Weaker Start, Stronger Finish
Volatility has been elevated for the bond market in the past 4 weeks and espec...
Wed, Dec 1 2021, 11:09 AM
It's an interesting, confusing, and tumultuous moment for financial markets as traders digest an unprecedented confluence of relevant events. Two eve...
Wed, Dec 1 2021, 11:05 AM
Thanksgiving week, a three-day business week for many, saw the usual sharp decline in mortgage activity although purchase applications remained season...
Wed, Dec 1 2021, 11:01 AM
Lenders are focused on December, and 2022, and along those lines the MBA’s Chief Economist Mike Fratantoni will be presenting a forecast today for nex...
Tue, Nov 30 2021, 4:19 PM
Big Swings as Covid Squares Off Against The Fed
It was omicron vs the Fed today and bonds had a front row se...
Tue, Nov 30 2021, 3:50 PM
Mortgage rates ended the previous week with a hopeful outlook due to the omicron variant. In general, rates benefit from news and events that cause in...
Tue, Nov 30 2021, 12:55 PM
While the profits were nowhere near 2020 levels, independent mortgage banks and mortgage subsidiaries of chartered banks reported their third quarter ...
Tue, Nov 30 2021, 12:52 PM
The new conforming loans limits for mortgages that can be acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were announced this morning by the Federal Housing Fi...
Tue, Nov 30 2021, 11:29 AM
The old adage about waiting for the kettle to boil could be applied to the widely predicted deceleration of home price appreciation. It seems to be ha...
Tue, Nov 30 2021, 10:49 AM
Brian C. writes, “I was surprised when I got my new Tesla, instead of the new car smell, it had an Elon Musk.” Tesla was founded 18 years ago. Time fl...
Tue, Nov 30 2021, 10:25 AM
Today's reaction function for the market is very simple and very obvious. Shortly after midnight, Moderna's CEO made some discouraging comments about...
Mon, Nov 29 2021, 3:27 PM
Bonds Find Footing After Shaky Start
This morning we found ourselves in the uncomfortable position of watchi...
Mon, Nov 29 2021, 11:12 AM
Bonds are starting out the new week retaining a majority of last Friday's mega rally. The omicron-inspired gains were big enough that 10yr yields ar...
Mon, Nov 29 2021, 11:05 AM
The number of signed contracts for the purchase of existing homes made another significant about face in October. The National Association of Realtors...
Mon, Nov 29 2021, 11:02 AM
While headlines move interest rates and countries are shutting their borders again, our industry awaits the official 2022 conforming loan limits after...
Fri, Nov 26 2021, 2:51 PM
Just when it looked like the current week would fizzle out on a negative note for rates, our least favorite market mover is back in the news. B.1.1.52...
Fri, Nov 26 2021, 2:50 PM
Covid Variant Causes Massive Market Reaction
This morning it was B.1.1.529. By the afternoon, the WHO label...
Fri, Nov 26 2021, 11:34 AM
Remember July? Covid was a fading memory and the light was clearly visible at the end of the pandemic tunnel. Then came Delta. It served as a painf...
Fri, Nov 26 2021, 10:39 AM
As millions of Americans convince themselves that loading and unloading the dishwasher counts as exercise, while we are reminded that rates are imposs...
Wed, Nov 24 2021, 4:18 PM
Fed Minutes Largely As Expected; No Major Drama For Bonds
After weathering the storm of this morning's data,...
Wed, Nov 24 2021, 1:51 PM
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reports that the volume of loan applications submitted during the week ended November 19 increased slightly, co...
Wed, Nov 24 2021, 11:38 AM
One of the side effects of holiday-shortened weeks is a condensed data schedule. That's especially true of Thanksgiving week as it essentially remove...
Wed, Nov 24 2021, 10:47 AM
New home sales improved slightly on the unexpected, reported surge in September and still managed to disappoint. The U.S. Census Bureau and the Depart...
Wed, Nov 24 2021, 10:44 AM
Ready to play Iowa's Thanksgiving dinner bingo ? Coffee prices are at a 10-year high, but drinkers will figure out what to do to afford it. All day lo...
Tue, Nov 23 2021, 4:46 PM
Mortgage rates continued higher today as the bond market remained in a defensive stance for a variety of reasons. The week's scheduled Treasury auctio...
Tue, Nov 23 2021, 4:41 PM
Strong Auction No Match For Bond Bears
Today's 7yr auction was the biggest potential source of volatility fo...
Tue, Nov 23 2021, 11:06 AM
The price of plenty of things, not just mortgages, is set by supply and demand. Forget the price of turkey… how ‘bout Christmas trees?! I don’t know h...
Tue, Nov 23 2021, 10:46 AM
As of last Friday, the bond market looked keen on rejecting any attempt to revisit the recent ceiling in late October (10yr yields were just over 1.70...
Mon, Nov 22 2021, 5:09 PM
Mortgage rates began the new week on a bad note with the average lender full erasing the improvement seen on Friday. This leaves many lenders at their...
Mon, Nov 22 2021, 4:41 PM
Abrupt Sell-Off To Begin Holiday-Shortened Week
The day began with confirmation that Fed Chair Powell would ...
Mon, Nov 22 2021, 11:33 AM
There was some speculation that Biden would nominate Fed governor Lael Brainard to take over as Fed chair. It an outside possibility, but one that le...
Mon, Nov 22 2021, 11:11 AM
Existing home sales moved higher in October, the second consecutive month of growth . The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) said sales of pre-ow...
Mon, Nov 22 2021, 11:02 AM
Time flies. For example, Thanksgiving week is here already. Debbie Harry, of Blondie fame, is 76 years old. Better.com has already been around five ye...
Fri, Nov 19 2021, 3:13 PM
Strong Showing Overall Despite Late Day Weakness
As noted in this morning's commentary, the key source of in...
Fri, Nov 19 2021, 3:00 PM
Winter is coming, both literally and figuratively. While the fallout remains to be seen, financial markets are already reacting. In the literal sense,...
Fri, Nov 19 2021, 12:45 PM
The ink wasn’t dry on Fannie Mae’s October economic forecast when the month’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) was published showing an inflation rate two-t...
Fri, Nov 19 2021, 11:43 AM
As yesterday's AM commentary tacitly suggested, "winter is coming" in terms of the connection between colder temps and higher covid case counts. Euro...
Fri, Nov 19 2021, 10:56 AM
Before we gear up for reported Christmas tree shortages and their exorbitant prices, Brent G. writes, “My family asked me what I was planning for Than...
Thu, Nov 18 2021, 3:31 PM
Bonds Add to Case For Stability
Bonds put in a solid enough performance on Thursday with 10yr yields almost ...
Thu, Nov 18 2021, 2:58 PM
Mortgage rates were modestly lower today as the bond market continued pushing back against somewhat abrupt weakness. The average media coverage says s...
Thu, Nov 18 2021, 11:22 AM
Refinancing continued to account for the largest share of mortgage originations in September, 53 percent of the total compared to 52 percent in Octobe...
Thu, Nov 18 2021, 10:36 AM
The overnight session was mostly uneventful for the bond market, but trading levels were slightly weaker in the first hour of trading. Since then, bu...
Thu, Nov 18 2021, 10:19 AM
Recently the podcast, its link at the bottom of this opening paragraph daily, quoted, “Change in residential lending is mandatory; progress is optiona...
Wed, Nov 17 2021, 4:46 PM
Mortgage rates finally caught a break after spending the past six business days moving higher at a faster-than-normal pace. During that time, the aver...
Wed, Nov 17 2021, 4:40 PM
Bonds Improve, Led by Treasuries as Corporate Pipeline Clears
One of the key sources of motivation for risin...
Wed, Nov 17 2021, 10:39 AM
29 working/business days left in 2021. Some MLOs, who can shift their client’s refi closings, are thinking about the tax implications of closing this ...
Wed, Nov 17 2021, 10:31 AM
Residential construction numbers were mixed in October. The U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development report an increase in c...
