I hope you and your family had a fabulous holiday weekend. We began our holiday on our boat at Liberty Bay in Poulsbo with a beautiful display of fireworks on July 3rd – it was a lot of fun.
What May Impact Mortgage Rates this Week: July 7, 2014
July 7, 2014 by 1 Comment
What May Impact Mortgage Rates this Week: June 16, 2014
June 16, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has just reduced their forecast for the US GDP from 2.8% to 2.0% due to weaker than expected first half of the year. The bond market seems to be shrugging this off with a much stronger than expected report from the Empire State Index. Mortgage backed securities may also be getting support from increased tensions in the Ukraine. Remember, investors will often seek the safety of bonds over stocks when global issues are causing concerns.
What May Impact Mortgage Rates this Week: June 9, 2014
June 9, 2014 by 1 Comment
This week’s economic calendar appears to be on the lighter side.
- Thursday, June 12: Retail Sales and Initial Jobless Claims
- Friday, June 13: Producer Price Index (PPI) and Consumer Sentiment Index (UoM)
Mortgage rates are still at very low levels. [Read more…]
What May Impact Mortgage Rates this Week: April 21, 2014
April 21, 2014 by Leave a Comment
This week’s economic calendar appears to be a little on the light side. There are no economic indicators due today. Here are the economic indicators scheduled to be released this week:
It shouldn’t be a hassle to get a mortgage rate quote
March 27, 2014 by 2 Comments
I did a little experiment on Tuesday. One of my Seattle home buyers asked why there’s a difference between the rates I’ve provided and those you can find posted online. I explained to him that the rates posted online are often not available and typically those sites are used for “lead generation” purposes. When consumers enter their email addresses and phone numbers, they may start to feel very popular by being inundated with phone calls and emails by mortgage lenders. When someone fills out a form requesting mortgage information or a rate quote online, they are considered a “hot lead” and their contact info is worth money and may be sold and re-sold.
Reader Question regarding Down Payments for Second Homes
February 13, 2014 by Leave a Comment
I received this comment from one of my readers on a post about occupancy and I thought it would make a good post all on it’s own.
What is the normal down payment on a second home? Our credit is in the “good” range and our debt to income is very good.
What May Impact Mortgage Rates this Week: January 27, 2014
January 27, 2014 by 2 Comments
What does this grainy picture of me and Coach Knox have to do with mortgage rates? Nothing… but this week has everything to do with the Seattle Seahawks as we count the minutes down to the Super Bowl!! This photo was taken in 1986 for a calendar back when I worked in a title unit at Chicago Title… I’m wearing Kenny Easley’s uniform and yes, that is really Chuck!
This week is packed full of economic indicators that my impact the direction of mortgage interest rates. Also, mortgage rates are based on bonds (mortgage backed securities) and when there is a sell off in the stock market, we tend to see mortgage rates improve. This is because investors will seek the safety of bonds over the volatility sometimes found with stocks. We’re seeing a bit of that now with mortgage rates trending lower.
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