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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 17, 2010
Mortgage Rates Impacted by Data, June 17, 2010
Mortgage Rate Trend Direction Down
Economic Reports/Rate Impact CPI, 8:30 AM ET, High Rate Impact
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 17, 2010
Lenders may lower mortgage rates from their initial morning pricing as bond prices have rallied. After CPI data and Jobless claims data caused initial pricing to be improved, the Philadelphia Fed Index came in very poor and has moved mortgage-backed securities (MBS) even higher. The higher MBS prices, the lower the rate on mortgages. Continued volatility may move markets again today.
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 17, 2010
Continued improvement in prices for mortgage-backed securities may enable lenders to improve their pricing to consumers even more. After higher than expected Jobless Claims and a very poor report from the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank on manufacturing activity in its region, investors have sought the relative safety of bonds over stocks. When economic news shows signs of weakness, investors grow concerned over companies’ ability to earn revenue or profits. In this environment they tend to sell stocks and buy bonds which returns are more certain.
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Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | June 17, 2010
The U.S. Senate has approved a three-month extension for closing home sales that qualify for the federal homebuyer tax credit.
The measure would extend until Sept. 30 the current June 30 deadline for homebuyers to close sales to qualify for either the $8,000 first-time homebuyer or $6,500 repeat homebuyer tax credits.
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Peter King - MortgageLoan.com | June 16, 2010
New legislation intended to shore up FHA finances could end up making the agency’s home mortgages a lot less attractive to the people they’re supposed to help.
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 16, 2010
Mortgage Rate Trend Direction Down
Economic Reports/Rate Impact Housing Starts, 8:30 AM ET, Moderate Rate Impact
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Kara Johnson - MortgageLoan.com | June 16, 2010
Housing construction starts fell 10 percent in May, including a 17.2 percent drop in single-family homes, as buyer interest waned following the end of the federal homebuyer tax credit.
According to the Commerce Department’s monthly new residential construction report, released this morning, construction starts on single-family homes in May were at an annual rate of 468,000, down from an adjusted rate of 568,000 in April.
At the same time, construction starts on buildings of five units or more, includin
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Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | June 16, 2010
Government-supported lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been directed to withdraw their stock from listing on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), after continued weak performance of their common stock.
The order came from the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which has been the two lender’s parent agency since they were placed in conservatorship in September 2008.
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Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | June 15, 2010
Although the housing market is likely to remain weak for some time, pent-up demographic factors will likely spur a return to former rates of growth within the next few years, according to a new study released today.
The United States will likely add another 12.5 million to 15 million households this decade, equaling or exceeding the housing boom years of 1995-2005 and boosting home sales and new construction. That’s according to the new report released this morning by Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies.
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 15, 2010
Mortgage Rate Re-Pricing Alert 12:45 PM ET, June 15, 2010
Lenders may increase mortgage rates from their initial morning pricing as bond prices have declined. Today continues to be extremely volatile in the bond markets. The rise in stocks has taken over as the primary driver of bond prices downward. Mortgage-backed securities which are bonds backed by pools of mortgages have lost their popularity at midday resulting in potential mortgage rate re-pricing.
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 15, 2010
Mortgage Rates Steady to Better, June 15, 2010
Mortgage Rate Trend Direction Neutral/Down
Economic Reports/Rate Impact Import Prices, 8:30 AM ET, Low Rate Impact
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Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | June 14, 2010
Was the subprime mortgage crises caused by poor math skills?
A recent study suggests that borrowers who do poorly on a basic math test are more likely to miss mortgage payments and eventually fall into foreclosure. Persons who performed poorly on the test were about four times as likely to go into foreclosure as those who performed best.
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 14, 2010
Mortgage Rates Start Week at Record Lows, June 14, 2010
Mortgage Rate Trend Direction Up
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 14, 2010
Mortgage Rate Re-Pricing Alert 3:15 PM ET, June 14, 2010
Lenders may lower mortgage rates from their initial morning pricing as bond prices are sharply improved from this morning. Today has been extremely volatile in the bond markets.
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Peter King - MortgageLoan.com | June 11, 2010
Legislation to extend the closing date to Sept. 30, 2010 for home purchases to qualify for the homebuyer tax credits has been introduced in the U.S. Senate.
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Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | June 11, 2010
It looks like FHA mortgages are about to become more costly, now that the U.S. House of Representatives has approved a bill authorizing an increase in the annual premium paid by borrowers.
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 11, 2010
Mortgage Rates End Week Lower Despite Higher Rate Expectations June 11, 2010
Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 11, 2010
Mortgage Rate Re-Pricing Alert 12:30 AM ET, June 11, 2010
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 11, 2010
Mortgage Rates Continue Volatility, June 11, 2010
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 10, 2010
Mortgage Rate Re-Pricing Alert 2:00 PM ET, June 10, 2010
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Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | June 10, 2010
Mortgage rates fell to within a whisker of all-time lows across the board this past week, according to new figures this morning from Freddie Mac.
Both the 15-year fixed rate mortgage and one-year adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) fell to all-time lows, while only a single basis point – one hundredth of a percent – separated the 30-year fixed rate mortgage and 5-year ARM from matching their all-time lows in the Freddie Mac survey.
The average 30-year fixed rate mortgage was at 4.72 percent for the week ending today, wit
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Peter King - MortgageLoan.com | June 10, 2010
Overall foreclosure activity fell in May, even as the number of homes actually repossessed by lenders hit an all-time high that month, according to today’s monthly report from RealtyTrac.
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Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | June 10, 2010
The biggest date on the mortgage calendar right now is June 30. That’s the deadline for closing a home sale to qualify for the federal homebuyer tax credits. Miss it, and homebuyers are out up to $8,000 they could have taken right off the top of their 2010 tax bill.
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 10, 2010
Mortgage Rates Reach New Lows, More Records Ahead?, June 10, 2010
Mortgage Rate Trend Direction Up
Economic Reports/Rate Impact Jobless Claims, 8:30 AM ET, Moderate Rate Impact
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 09, 2010
Mortgage Rates Historically Low, But Can it Last?, June 9, 2010
Mortgage Rate Trend Direction Neutral/Up
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Kara Johnson - MortgageLoan.com | June 09, 2010
Applications to refinance existing mortgages took a big drop last week, even as long-term mortgage rates declined slightly, according to figures released today by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).
The seasonally adjusted MBA Refinance Index dropped 14.3 percent from the previous week, part of a 12.2 percent decline in overall mortgage applications.
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 09, 2010
Mortgage Rate Re-Pricing Alert 2:00 PM ET, June 9, 2010
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 08, 2010
Mortgage Rates Try to Hold Record Lows, June 8, 2010
Mortgage Rate Trend Direction Neutral/Up
Economic Reports/Rate Impact No Reports released today
Key News European Currency and Debt status
Summary
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Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | June 08, 2010
U.S. housing prices rose for the second consecutive month, according to real estate data firm Integrated Asset Services (IAS), posting a 0.9 percent gain in the month of April.
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Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | June 07, 2010
Two subsidiaries of former mortgage lender Countrywide Financial will pay out $108 million to settle an claims that they charged excessive fees to borrowers in default or Chapter 13 bankruptcy, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced today.
According to the FTC, Countrywide charged inflated fees to borrowers who were behind on their mortgage payments for default-related services meant to protect the lender’s interest in the property.
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 07, 2010
Lenders may lower mortgage rates from their initial morning pricing as the stock market is sharply lower in late trading and bond prices are sharply higher. These conditions make favorable rate changes possible at the end of the day. The lack of a stock market rebound earlier in the day after last Friday’s big losses was given by analysts as a reason for the sell-off at the end of the day. Also, the US dollar rose to its highest level in over four years today, demonstrating continued worries about European country debt.
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David Coster - MortgageLoan.com | June 07, 2010
Mortgage Rate Trend Direction Neutral/Down
Economic Reports/Rate Impact No Reports released today
Key News Decline in value of Euro Currency
Summary
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Kara Johnson - MortgageLoan.com | June 04, 2010
A weaker-than-expected jobs report sent stocks tumbling this morning, despite an improvement in the unemployment rate.
Although bad news for the economy in general, this morning’s news does suggest that mortgage interest rates will remain subdued for at least a while longer.
The Labor Department reported this morning that nonfarm payroll employment grew by 431,000 in May, largely due to 411,000 temporary government workers hired for the 2010 Census.
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Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | June 03, 2010
U.S. home prices are up 6.8 percent from one year ago, while the share of foreclosed properties on the market has dropped significantly, according to figures released today by real estate valuation company Clear Capital.
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Peter King - MortgageLoan.com | June 03, 2010
Mortgage rates held steady this past week, remaining near all-time lows, according to the weekly rate survey from Freddie Mac.
Fixed-rate mortgages were virtually unchanged, with both 30-and 15-year rates moving only a single basis point. In the case of 15-year loans, the average rate declined to 4.20 percent, a new all-time low, with 0.7 points paid.
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Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | June 03, 2010
Bank of America is offering to reduce the principal on certain mortgages where the borrower owes more than the home is worth as part of a program to help homeowners avoid foreclosure, the lender announced today.
The bank said it has begun contacting borrowers with certain types of loans to determine their eligibility for the program, beginning with those who are at least 120 days delinquent on their loans.
The initiative, the National Homeownership Retention Program (NHRP), is being conducted as part of the company’s effo
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Kara Johnson - MortgageLoan.com | June 02, 2010
Signed contracts for home sales rose 6.0 percent in April, as homebuyers sought to take advantage of expiring tax credits before an April 30 deadline, according to figures released today by the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
It was the third consecutive monthly increase reported by the NAR, and slightly stronger than analysts had expected.
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Peter King - MortgageLoan.com | June 01, 2010
Private residential construction rose a seasonally adjusted 4.4 percent in April, as homebuyers moved to take advantage of an expiring federal tax credit.