08 Jan 2015
By Mark Feder

FOMC Minutes: Low Inflation Rates Won’t Delay Rate Hikes

Market Outlook
The minutes of the Fed’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) indicate that Fed policymakers aren’t concerned about low inflation rates as an obstacle to raising the target federal funds rate. The national inflation rate was 1.50 percent for the 13 months ending in October. The inflation rate as reported in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) dropped to 1.25 percent in November. The Core Consumer Price Index, which excludes food and energy sectors, showed an inflation rate of 1.75 percent. The Fed has repeatedly cited a target of 2.00 percent inflation, but inflation rates have remained consistently lower. Recent freefall in…
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05 Jan 2015
By Mark Feder

What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – January 5, 2015

Market Outlook
Case-Shiller reported that home prices hit their lowest pace in two years. According to the Case-Shiller 20-City Home Price Index for October, home prices fell in 10 cities, rose in eight cities and were unchanged in two cities. In other news, pending home sales increased and weekly jobless claims rose. The details: Case-Shiller: Home Price Growth Lowest in Two Years According to its 20-City Home Price Index, Case-Shiller said that home prices dropped by 0.10 percent to a reading of 4.50 percent year-over-year as compared to September's reading of 4.80 percent year-over-year. Analysts expected home price growth to drop to…
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29 Dec 2014
By Mark Feder

What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – December 29, 2014

Market Outlook
Last week's economic news included several housing related reports. Housing markets continue to cool as November reports on existing and new home sales fell below expectations. New Jobless claims were lower than expected by 10,000 claims. The details: Existing and New Home Sales Down, FHFA House Price Index Up The National Association of Realtors® reported that November sales of existing homes fell to 4.93 million sales against expectations of 5.18 million sales. October's reading was revised from 5.25 million sales to 5.26 million. This was seen as an anomaly that may have occurred during uncertainty caused by volatile stock markets.…
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22 Dec 2014
By Mark Feder

What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – December 22, 2014

Market Outlook
Last week's scheduled economic events were few but informative. Housing related reports included the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index for December, which stayed close to a nine-year high reading of 59 in September. December's reading was 57 and fell two points shy of the expected reading of 59. November's reading was 58. Readings above 50 indicate that more builders are positive about market conditions than those who are not. Housing Starts for November were lower according to the Department of Commerce's report released Tuesday. The reading for November was 1.028 million starts on a seasonally adjusted…
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