02 Dec 2013
By Mark Feder
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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – December 2, 2013

Mortgage Rates
The short holiday week brought a flurry of economic reports last week. Highlights included pending home sales, the S&P Case-Shiller Housing Market Indices and the FHFA home price index. No reports were released on Thursday and Friday in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday. The NAR released its Pending Home Sales report for October. Although pending home sales dropped by -0.60 percent, the decline was less than September’s reading of -4.60 percent. NAR cited higher home prices and mortgage rates along with concerns over the then-pending government shutdown as factors that contributed to fewer pending sales. Pending sales are determined by…
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25 Nov 2013
By Mark Feder
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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – November 25, 2013

Mortgage Rates
Last week's scheduled economic news was varied, but mortgage rates fell and jobless claims were significantly lower than expected. The minutes for last month's FOMC meeting were released, and confirmed the Federal Reserve's intention to leave its quantitative easing program unchanged at least for the near term. The National Association of Homebuilders Wells Fargo Housing Market Index for November indicated that builder confidence, while still positive, dipped by one point to a reading of 54 as compared to an anticipated reading of 55, and October's revised reading of 54. Retail Sales for October Rose By 0.4 Percent NAHB noted that…
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18 Nov 2013
By Mark Feder
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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – November 18, 2013

Mortgage Rates
The Veterans Day holiday on Monday contributed to a quiet week for economic news. On Wednesday the reading for the federal budget deficit for October fell from September's reading of -$120 billion to -$92 billion. Freddie Mac Released Its Primary Mortgage Market Survey On Thursday The average mortgage rates increased across the board, but remain below historical levels. The rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage rose by 9 basis points from 4.16 percent to 4.35 percent with discount points decreasing from 0.80 percent to 0.70 percent. The average 15-year mortgage rate rose from 3.27 percent to 3.35 percent with…
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20 May 2013
By Mark Feder
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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – May 20, 2013

Mortgage Rates
Last week was jam-packed with economic news; here are some highlights with emphasis on housing and mortgage related news: Monday: Retail sales for April increased to -0.1 percent from the March reading of -0.5 percent and also surpassed Wall Street's downward forecast of -0.6 percent. Retail sales are important to economic recovery as sales of goods and services represent approximately 70 percent of the U.S. economy. Tuesday: The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) released its Small Business Optimism Index for April with encouraging results. April's index rose by 2.6 points to 92.1. A reading of 90.7 indicates economic recovery. This…
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