Mortgage Market At a
Glance

Existing home sales beat expectations, jobless claims rose for the first time in weeks, and stocks fall on the news. Negative job data will trump positive economic news the majority of the time. Investors see positive news as temporary. Once they see the news coupled with job growth, they will believe the recovery is real and in full swing.

I hope this has helped your business and provided clarity for your clients.
Use “Post By Category” on the right to review previous “Mortgage Market At a Glance”.

***************************

Sign up for a FREE subscription to the weekly “Mortgage Industry Update” with a full break down of what is going on and where we might be headed.Check out the archive

Mortgage Market At a Glance™ indicates the trend of mortgage rates and provides commentary about market conditions.

This format is not to meant to offer locking, or any other advice on any specific situation. It is for informational purposes only.

Market data is subject to change without notice.

Feel free to contact me if you have questions. 520-271-7495 Tom@TheHeathTeam.com

Mortgage Market At a
Glance

With no major economic news coming out today, our focus will be on the stock markets. Will investors see bargains and start buying? Will they see gloom and continue selling? In general, if stocks are dropping in price, it is reducing borrowing costs.

I hope this has helped your business and provided clarity for your clients.
Use “Post By Category” on the right to review previous “Mortgage Market At a Glance”.

***************************

Sign up for a FREE subscription to the weekly “Mortgage Industry Update” with a full break down of what is going on and where we might be headed.Check out the archive

Mortgage Market At a Glance™ indicates the trend of mortgage rates and provides commentary about market conditions.

This format is not to meant to offer locking, or any other advice on any specific situation. It is for informational purposes only.

Market data is subject to change without notice.

Feel free to contact me if you have questions. 520-271-7495 Tom@TheHeathTeam.com

Mortgage Market At a
Glance

We will be watching closely and suggest you stay in communication with your mortgage professional, as a wild swing is possible.

I hope this has helped your business and provided clarity for your clients.
Use “Post By Category” on the right to review previous “Mortgage Market At a Glance”.

***************************

Sign up for a FREE subscription to the weekly “Mortgage Industry Update” with a full break down of what is going on and where we might be headed.Check out the archive

Mortgage Market At a Glance™ indicates the trend of mortgage rates and provides commentary about market conditions.

This format is not to meant to offer locking, or any other advice on any specific situation. It is for informational purposes only.

Market data is subject to change without notice.

Feel free to contact me if you have questions. 520-271-7495 Tom@TheHeathTeam.com

The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) reported that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) could not distinguish between 2008 and 2009 home purchases and outlined concerns that controls would not be adequate to prevent erroneous or fraudulent claims for the Credit. TIGTA also identified an estimated 73,119 (4.1 percent) of the individuals receiving the Credit had incorrect purchase dates recorded on the IRS’ system; 59,802 of these taxpayers purchased their homes in 2009, but the IRS incorrectly recorded the purchases as 2008 or the years were not recorded.

This means that some taxpayers could incorrectly receive notices requiring repayment.

TGITA’s report showed that 1,326 single taxpayers the Social Security Administration recorded as deceased claimed $10.1 million in erroneous Credits.

It would be a good idea to share this information with your customers and clients who participated in the tax credit programs so they are clear on their rights and responsibilities of the tax credit they used.

Read the TGITA report

There are strong dissenters to the theory of a bond bubble, however. Recently, the Wall Street Journal reported that the increase in bond price has to do with a lack of supply, not an over abundance of demand. “Despite nearly two years of heavy borrowing by the federal government and nonfinancial corporations, the total amount of debt outstanding in the U.S. is still nearly $700 billion lower than it was at its peak in the first quarter of 2009, according to Federal Reserve data released Friday.”

“It’s more accurate to say that we’re still disgorging the last credit bubble than that we’re starting a new one,” says Harvard economics professor Kenneth Rogoff.

“There’s no question there’s a huge premium on fixed-income products, but to call it a bubble is ridiculous,” says David Rosenberg, chief economist and strategist at Gluskin Sheff in Toronto. “It’s more than just price, it’s also about psychology. Are people really buying bonds to get rich?”

It appears that the thought of a bubble may be over stated…..of course, there were dissenters present during all of the previous bubbles.

While there maybe an economic derivation for bubbles, there is also a psychological one. I still contend that bonds are being sold to investors seeking safety and under the presumption that they will continue to hold value. It seems that investors believe bonds are indestructible. The bubble will burst if that faith is ever undermined.

There may be some increases in the sales data for new and existing homes “but no one is going to take them as a sign of new momentum,” said Lou Crandall, chief economist at Wrightson ICAP.

A main focus of the week will be on the Fed’s Open Market Committee (FOMC), the body that effects interest rates. While few are expecting that the Fed will announce any increase in short term borrowing rates, they are looking for signs of the Fed’s plans for next year. The meetings are closed to the public and the minutes are not released this week, but the participants language during interviews will give some indication.

The major data of the week surrounds housing. There are several reports due out and the anticipated results are weak. Even if the data is stronger then expected, investors will not be impressed. “Ultimately we’ll need to see recovery on labor market before we see recovery in the housing sector,” said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James & Associates Inc.

Jobs continue to be the pivotal deficiency that keeps the economy from making significant leaps forward. Even though jobless claims have dropped 11% since July, economists and investors are not enthused. If that trend continues, however, expect optimism about the economy to grow.

The weekend indicators are to expect the stock rally we have seen over the last couple of weeks to stall. This would benefit mortgage rates as investors would turn back to the bond and Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS) markets.

It does not take much to sway investors, so we will be watching the daily news closely for any indication of which direction the markets might head.

Click for a glossary of the highlighted words
Subscribe to the daily “Market at a Glance” or the Weekly “Mortgage Market Update”
Archive

Mortgage Market At a
Glance

I hope this has helped your business and provided clarity for your clients.
Use “Post By Category” on the right to review previous “Mortgage Market At a Glance”.

***************************

Sign up for a FREE subscription to the weekly “Mortgage Industry Update” with a full break down of what is going on and where we might be headed.Check out the archive

Mortgage Market At a Glance™ indicates the trend of mortgage rates and provides commentary about market conditions.

This format is not to meant to offer locking, or any other advice on any specific situation. It is for informational purposes only.

Market data is subject to change without notice.

Feel free to contact me if you have questions. 520-271-7495 Tom@TheHeathTeam.com

Mortgage Market At a
Glance

I hope this has helped your business and provided clarity for your clients.
Use “Post By Category” on the right to review previous “Mortgage Market At a Glance”.

***************************

Sign up for a FREE subscription to the weekly “Mortgage Industry Update” with a full break down of what is going on and where we might be headed.Check out the archive

Mortgage Market At a Glance™ indicates the trend of mortgage rates and provides commentary about market conditions.

This format is not to meant to offer locking, or any other advice on any specific situation. It is for informational purposes only.

Market data is subject to change without notice.

Feel free to contact me if you have questions. 520-271-7495 Tom@TheHeathTeam.com

“The retail sales number is a huge for the economy. The weaker the retail sales number, the more it tells you consumers are in the retrenchment mode,” said Steven Ricchiuto of Mizuho Securities, who’s still worried about a double-dip. “How much will corporate America continue to invest if consumers continue to hold back?”

Stocks have been on recent rally and the future of it is in question. Consumers will be the driving force of moving the economy forward and their faith will be shown in this week’s retail sales and sentiment reports.

While stocks have fared well, bonds and Mortgage Backed Security (MBS) prices have fallen and pushed borrowing costs up. We are well off the bottom in rates, but remain at extremely low levels. If the stock rally continues, expect rates to continue their climb. It is possible that we have passed the bottom of the rate market. Only time will tell of course, but we will be watching trends very close.

“Everybody is waiting to see the next couple of weeks of numbers so we can have a better idea of what is going on in the economy,” said Hugh Johnson, chairman and chief investment officer at Hugh Johnson Advisors. Johnson agreed with President Obama’s assessment that the economy is growing, but at a sluggish pace.

Double dip fears of re-entering a recession are still in the market, but they seem to be dissipating. While the news is still full of negative bits, anecdotal evidence points to the news being more good then bad. According to the Market Watch, “Of the 496 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported earnings for the quarter, 75% have posted earnings that topped analyst expectations”

If you have been holding out for the lowest rate possible, you should be watching the markets very closely. A drop is still possible, but a stabilization and slight increase is very likely.

Click for a glossary of the highlighted words
Subscribe to the daily “Market at a Glance” or the Weekly “Mortgage Market Update”
Archive

Mortgage Market At a
Glance

I hope this has helped your business and provided clarity for your clients.
Use “Post By Category” on the right to review previous “Mortgage Market At a Glance”.

***************************

Sign up for a FREE subscription to the weekly “Mortgage Industry Update” with a full break down of what is going on and where we might be headed.Check out the archive

Mortgage Market At a Glance™ indicates the trend of mortgage rates and provides commentary about market conditions.

This format is not to meant to offer locking, or any other advice on any specific situation. It is for informational purposes only.

Market data is subject to change without notice.

Feel free to contact me if you have questions. 520-271-7495 Tom@TheHeathTeam.com