23 Dec 2013
By Mark Feder
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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – December 23, 2013

Mortgage Rates
According to December's NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index, home builder confidence rose by four points to a reading of 58; this surpassed the consensus of 56 and November's reading of 56. November Housing Starts were released Wednesday and also exceeded expectations and the prior month's reading. 1.09 million housing starts were reported for November against expectations of 963,000 and October's reading of 889,000 housing starts. Building permits issued in November came in at 1.01 million and fell short of October's reading of 1.04 million permits issued. November's reading exceeded expectations of 990,000 permits issued. The week's big news emerged after…
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16 Dec 2013
By Mark Feder
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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – December 16, 2013

Mortgage Rates
Mortgage Debt Rises For First Time Since Recession Last week was relatively quiet concerning scheduled housing-related news, but the Federal Reserve's financial accounts report, released on Monday, indicated that mortgage debt in the U.S. had increased for the first time since the first quarter (Q1) of 2008. Mortgage debt increased by a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of $87.4 billion, or 0.90 percent. Mortgage debt remains approximately 12.00 percent below pre-recession levels. Increasing debt is not often considered good news, but in the case of mortgage debt in today's economy, it suggests economic recovery in the form of higher home prices and…
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12 Dec 2013
By Mark Feder
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Why Should My Clients Lock In Their Interest Rates

Mortgage Rates
Interest rates fluctuate frequently, often depending on the news. If you are considering refinancing your home, your loan officer may suggest locking in the interest rate on your loan. There are some valid reasons why this is a good idea including: Saving Money For The Long-term Over the life of a loan, an increase of as little as one-quarter of a percent can cost thousands of extra dollars. Spending a small amount of money now to lock in a rate can save money over the life of the loan. Your loan officer will explain the difference in rate increases initially,…
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09 Dec 2013
By Mark Feder
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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – December 9, 2013

Mortgage Rates
Last week brought several indicators of a strengthening economy. New home sales, private and federal employment and mortgage rates rose. The Department of Commerce released construction spending numbers for October with mixed results. Although public projects fueled an 0.80 percent increase in month-to-month construction spending, residential construction fell by 0.60 percent. Analysts had expected an increase of 0.50 percent and also noted that the negative effect of the government shutdown was a "blip." October's reading for construction spending was the highest since 2004. CoreLogic released data that home prices rose by 0.20 percent, which represents a year-over-year growth rate of…
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