Fri, Dec 10 2021, 3:53 PM
What's Up With Today's MBS Volatility?
MBS prices suffered from two infrequent sources of volatility today. ...
Fri, Dec 10 2021, 12:08 PM
This week's economic data headliner was this morning's CPI report. It showed core inflation at 4.9% as expected. Had the number been 2bps higher or ...
Fri, Dec 10 2021, 10:50 AM
Access to jumbo mortgage credit continued to increase in November, but the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) says it is still down significantly from...
Fri, Dec 10 2021, 10:46 AM
When the public sees headlines like, “A Black Couple had a White Friend Show Their Home and Its Appraisal Rose by Nearly Half a Million Dollars,” of c...
Thu, Dec 9 2021, 4:08 PM
Refreshingly Resilient Despite Bumpy 30yr Auction
There have been a few flashes of resilience in the bond ma...
Thu, Dec 9 2021, 2:52 PM
Mortgage rates stabilized yesterday after moving higher on the first 2 days of the week. They managed to improve modestly today despite some volatilit...
Thu, Dec 9 2021, 11:14 AM
On Wednesday CoreLogic reported that prices in October were up 18 percent on an annual basis, the highest level in more than 45 years and identical to...
Thu, Dec 9 2021, 11:08 AM
LIBOR has taken longer to exit the stage than Lawrence Olivier, but the final curtain call is coming for the index. The Consumer Financial Protection ...
Thu, Dec 9 2021, 10:59 AM
Want to know who’s in trouble for what? The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued its Supervisory Highlights report yesterday, which “shi...
Thu, Dec 9 2021, 10:01 AM
In yesterday's overnight session, European bonds were the key driver of US bond market weakness. Now in today's overnight session, they've had the op...
Wed, Dec 8 2021, 4:16 PM
Losses Continue for Treasuries, But Not MBS
Treasury yields were set to start the day lower before upbeat om...
Wed, Dec 8 2021, 3:39 PM
Mortgage rates stabilized today after spending the past 2 days moving modestly higher. In general, rates moved almost exclusively lower last week in r...
Wed, Dec 8 2021, 11:38 AM
Black Knight's Mortgage Monitor for the month of October looks at current delinquency statistics and their potential downstream effects on inventory a...
Wed, Dec 8 2021, 10:52 AM
The combination of lower rates and a post-holiday business week made mortgage application activity during the week ended December 3 more than a little...
Wed, Dec 8 2021, 10:49 AM
“Dear Santa: This year I would like a) a slim body, and b) a fat bank account. Don’t mix them up like you did last year.” Ah, if only we could turn ba...
Wed, Dec 8 2021, 9:14 AM
If last week could be reduced to a single theme, it would be that of omicron concerns driving a bond rally and stock sell-off. This week's theme is o...
Tue, Dec 7 2021, 4:50 PM
The chief finding from Fannie Mae's November National Housing Survey (NHS) was an increase in consumer pessimism. The company says respondents to the ...
Tue, Dec 7 2021, 4:46 PM
While it is clear that the growth of home prices has started to slow, reports on the results of the deceleration are diverging . Earlier this week Bla...
Tue, Dec 7 2021, 4:41 PM
Bonds Remain Under Pressure, But MBS Outperformed
Bonds managed to remain sideways during AM hours. In fact...
Tue, Dec 7 2021, 3:39 PM
Mortgage rates moved higher again today thus keeping them well within the sideways range that's been in place for the past 2 months. Omicron-related n...
Tue, Dec 7 2021, 11:17 AM
Today I head to San Diego for a California MBA board meeting, the home base of the Pacific Fleet. It’s been 80 years since Pearl Harbor, a “date that ...
Tue, Dec 7 2021, 9:41 AM
Last week's story was simple: unknowns and risks surrounding omicron prompted traders to shed risk by selling stocks and buying bonds. Unfortunately ...
Mon, Dec 6 2021, 4:26 PM
Bonds Sell-Off, But MBS Outperform
The week began decently enough with bonds holding most of last week's gai...
Mon, Dec 6 2021, 3:57 PM
Mortgage rates have been in a very narrow , sideways range since October. During that time, the average 30yr fixed rate hasn't moved by more than an e...
Mon, Dec 6 2021, 11:41 AM
Although MBS have been underperforming, the broader trend in the bond market remains in good shape--especially in light of current headwinds. The mos...
Mon, Dec 6 2021, 11:19 AM
Do you smoke weed? Have you been vaccinated against COVID? Too early in the workweek for those questions? (Is it okay to ask if someone’s been vaccina...
Fri, Dec 3 2021, 4:25 PM
A new report from ATTOM says that the number of mortgage originations dropped sharply in the third quarter. The company says there were 3.59 million r...
Fri, Dec 3 2021, 4:19 PM
Several developments are converging on the global economy and financial markets at the moment. Each brings its own causes for concern. Together, they ...
Fri, Dec 3 2021, 4:19 PM
Big Reversal in Bonds After Stocks Sell Off
Bonds paradoxically sold off after this morning's weaker jobs nu...
Fri, Dec 3 2021, 10:56 AM
Huh? Someone told me that “reality” shows are all scripted out ahead of time and there’s a standard recipe! What the heck?! There are some things wher...
Fri, Dec 3 2021, 10:55 AM
It's NFP day for the bond market although we have to ask ourselves what that really means in a world where the Fed has explicitly stated that it's see...
Thu, Dec 2 2021, 4:18 PM
MBS Give Up Yesterday's Gains Despite Decent Start
MBS have a bit of a problem. In the past week, they've g...
Thu, Dec 2 2021, 3:43 PM
Mortgage rates started weaker and ended stronger yesterday. Unfortunately , today delivered exactly the opposite scenario. The underlying bond market ...
Thu, Dec 2 2021, 11:26 AM
Like a rising tide, rising prices are pushing a lot of other financial elements higher. Earlier this week surging home prices drove a near $100K incre...
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...
