Wed, Dec 19 2018, 11:27 AM
The debate has opened again on the fate of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae (the GSEs). Ten plus years after the two were put in federal conservatorship at ...
Wed, Dec 19 2018, 9:23 AM
There are lots of interesting questions out there. “Why didn’t Tarzan have a beard?” for example. Another is, “Do borrowers know about low down paymen...
Wed, Dec 19 2018, 9:09 AM
What is the sound that doves make? I know they can cry, according to Prince, but "to cry or not to cry" would have been a weird headline title. I'm ...
Wed, Dec 19 2018, 8:12 AM
It is sad to say, but the good news can't last forever and the recent improvement in mortgage application volume, especially for purchase mortgages, p...
Tue, Dec 18 2018, 4:59 PM
We're typically talking about "the bond market in terms of 10yr Treasury yields," but in terms of PRICES , there was certainly some gravity in play c...
Tue, Dec 18 2018, 4:01 PM
Mortgage rates fell today as lenders got caught up with the friendly move in the bond market that we noted yesterday. Incidentally, today's bond marke...
Tue, Dec 18 2018, 3:47 PM
Only about one third of Americans told the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) in a recent survey that they thought it was a good time to buy a ho...
Tue, Dec 18 2018, 10:27 AM
Residential construction performed an abrupt and unexpected about face in October. Permits, housing starts, and completions all improved on a month-ov...
Tue, Dec 18 2018, 9:58 AM
Fed day tomorrow! We'll finally get to see what's what with respect to recent speculation and a factual shift in tone from several Fed members (inclu...
Tue, Dec 18 2018, 9:10 AM
“Rob, I’m no stranger to bribes.” (I am not going to say which mortgage banking production manager jokingly made that tongue-in-cheek statement.) We t...
Mon, Dec 17 2018, 5:46 PM
Just when you thought we might be done talking about "consolidations," there's that word again! I'd suggested on Friday that the modest bond market g...
Mon, Dec 17 2018, 4:55 PM
Mortgage rates were fairly flat yet again today. Unlike Friday, today's market movement made a case for a bit of a drop. "Market gains" mean different...
Mon, Dec 17 2018, 10:47 AM
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) is flirting with the danger zone. Although stressing that the ...
Mon, Dec 17 2018, 9:37 AM
More than anything else over the past 3 weeks, a shift in tone among Fed speakers has been at the heart of the year's best bond market rally. Seeming...
Fri, Dec 14 2018, 5:44 PM
Bonds began the day in modestly stronger territory. While they spend a small amount of the day trading a small distance away from those opening lev...
Fri, Dec 14 2018, 5:25 PM
Mortgage rates didn't move much today, and that's arguably a good thing. When the week began, we discussed the need for rates to cool-off after last w...
Fri, Dec 14 2018, 11:04 AM
Consistency can be boring, but in crazy times it can also be reassuring, even comforting. While they differ on the specifics, economists, at least tho...
Fri, Dec 14 2018, 9:24 AM
If you've truly come to an appreciation of the gravity of bonds' big picture headwinds over the past 2 years, then the past 5 weeks may feel like a st...
Fri, Dec 14 2018, 9:02 AM
Lots of folks in the mortgage biz like statistics and odds. They may not remember them, but they like them. (As Marcus L. writes, “People still play t...
Thu, Dec 13 2018, 7:12 PM
Whether or not next week's Fed announcement proves to bring a winter storm for bond markets remains to be seen. That said, if anything is going to do...
Thu, Dec 13 2018, 2:59 PM
Mortgage rates fell moderately today, helping them move part of the way back down toward their lowest levels in more than 3 months (seen back on Frida...
Thu, Dec 13 2018, 9:58 AM
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) added a little more evidence to the pile indicating a rather rapid slow-down in the housing market. MBA's Build...
Thu, Dec 13 2018, 9:26 AM
The first 3 days of this week have offered a clear correction/consolidation to the strong rally of the previous month. This had as much to do with ti...
Thu, Dec 13 2018, 9:23 AM
“Why do people pay to go up tall buildings and then put money in binoculars to look at things on the ground?” It turns out that, in terms of grabbing ...
Wed, Dec 12 2018, 7:02 PM
Today's trading session was far less eventful than anything else seen in the past few weeks, both in terms of movement and volume. Although Treasury ...
Wed, Dec 12 2018, 6:24 PM
Mortgage rates rose more noticeably today as a part of a 3 day bounce after hitting the lowest levels in roughly 3 months at the end of last week. Whe...
Wed, Dec 12 2018, 11:21 AM
Lenders continue to be pessimistic about their profit outlook as 2018 draws to an end. Fannie Mae said its fourth quarter 2018 Mortgage Lender Sentime...
Wed, Dec 12 2018, 10:16 AM
As we begin the third day of moderate weakness in bond markets, it's safe to say that we're looking at the correction and/or consolidation that we exp...
Wed, Dec 12 2018, 9:09 AM
Who among us has pushed for abolishing the mortgage-interest deduction, supported getting rid of government subsidies for the 30-year fixed-rate mortg...
Wed, Dec 12 2018, 8:11 AM
Almost exactly 10 years after he helped pass the legislation that established the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), Mark Anthony Calabria has bee...
Wed, Dec 12 2018, 8:06 AM
Borrower activity continued to pick up last week as interest rates retreated to September levels and mortgage applications extended their recent winni...
Tue, Dec 11 2018, 5:37 PM
Government shutdowns make good news. When risks of a shutdown flare up (especially with today's sort of political theater) it tends to dominate the...
Tue, Dec 11 2018, 4:46 PM
Mortgage rates rose almost imperceptibly today, with a few lenders not showing any detectable changes from yesterday. Still, it was the first time sin...
Tue, Dec 11 2018, 11:45 AM
CoreLogic reports that mortgage delinquency rates were little changed in September. The percentage of mortgage loans that were 30 or more days delinqu...
Tue, Dec 11 2018, 9:25 AM
I’m a capital markets guy. “Bespoke luxury” isn’t in my vocabulary. First-time home buyer prices and floorplans aren’t in the cards at the new Aston M...
Tue, Dec 11 2018, 9:19 AM
Consolidation... That's that word we use to refer to sideways and frequently narrower trading ranges that follow a period of more directional movement...
Mon, Dec 10 2018, 5:44 PM
Bonds struggled to find inspiration for the first few hours of the domestic session, but it was soon in ample supply thanks to Brexit-related headline...
Mon, Dec 10 2018, 4:57 PM
First things first: the average mortgage lender improved modestly today, compared to last Friday's levels. This leaves mortgage rates at their lowest ...
Mon, Dec 10 2018, 1:23 PM
Both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have announced the suspension of eviction lockouts for single-family and two- to four-unit properties for the holiday ...
Mon, Dec 10 2018, 12:25 PM
We know that home price growth is slowing , and cash-out refinancing has been coming back, still it is a bit of a stunner to find that homeowner equit...
Mon, Dec 10 2018, 11:14 AM
The stereotype of a second home usually involves a tropical beach, a boat dock on a lake, or skiers whizzing past a picture window, but the National A...
Mon, Dec 10 2018, 9:08 AM
The focus is on the holidays but there is plenty of 2019 wedding planning occurring. Despite that, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, adults are inc...
Mon, Dec 10 2018, 8:01 AM
We've had an impressive winning streak recently and have acquired gains worthy of a watchful, protective eye. Will this be a durable rally or a fleet...
Fri, Dec 7 2018, 4:23 PM
This morning's trading--both before and after NFP came out--basically acted as additional time for debate . Both MBS and Treasuries bounced quickly,...
Fri, Dec 7 2018, 3:55 PM
Mortgage rates held on to their recent improvements today after the important Employment Situation (the big "jobs report") showed November job creatio...
Fri, Dec 7 2018, 1:24 PM
Three researchers from the Urban Institute (UI) recently analyzed the new capital standards rule proposed by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA)...
Fri, Dec 7 2018, 11:51 AM
Fannie Mae's Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI) for November rose slightly, but within the 0.5-point increase was some increased confidence about pe...
Fri, Dec 7 2018, 9:17 AM
The year has sped along, and here we are at Pearl Harbor Day already. Although mortgage rates have lagged, what has pushed Treasury rates down? Releas...
Fri, Dec 7 2018, 8:33 AM
Powell's speech last week at the Economic Club of New York marked the beginning of an official shift. Until then, while the Fed had its dovish dissen...
Fri, Dec 7 2018, 8:30 AM
Access to mortgage credit moved higher in November, largely due to improved access to conforming mortgages. The Mortgage Bankers Association's Mortgag...
