Mortgage & Loans

Three Straight Months of Improvement in Builder Confidence, But There’s a Catch

Mortgage & Loans /
Three Straight Months of Improvement in Builder Confidence, But There's a Catch

The December National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) edged up one point to 39. This is the 3rd straight month of improvement in the index–a development that could be confused for something encouraging.  But the reality is that builder confidence is merely drifting along just barely above the lowest levels […]

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Highest Existing Home Sales in 8 Months But Don’t Get Excited

Mortgage & Loans /
Highest Existing Home Sales in 8 Months But Don't Get Excited

Existing-home sales extended their recent stabilization in November, rising 0.5% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.13 million, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). This is the 3rd straight increase and annualized sales are at their highest level in 8 months. The catch is that–much like several other housing metrics–Existing Sales have

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Mortgage Rates Near Lowest Levels Since October

Mortgage & Loans /
Mortgage Rates Near Lowest Levels Since October

Officially, there were 2 days at the end of November where the average lender’s 30yr fixed rates were just a hair lower (0.02% difference).  Otherwise, today’s rates would be the lowest since late October. The improvement follows this morning’s release of November’s Consumer Price Index (CPI). Inflation was so far below expectations that it raised

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Jumbo, Hedging, HELOC, Custom Newsletter Products; STRATMOR the UWM/TWO Deal

Mortgage & Loans /
Jumbo, Hedging, HELOC, Custom Newsletter Products; STRATMOR the UWM/TWO Deal

Lender and Broker Services, Products, and Software “The federal quality control standards under Dodd Frank for automated valuation models (AVMs) require valuation professionals to provide greater transparency in how AVMs determine credible, consistent, and objective property values. That’s why it’s important (and required) to regularly test, monitor and validate your AVMs. ICE’s advanced AVMs and

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Mortgage Rates Unchanged Ahead of Important Inflation Data

Mortgage & Loans /
Mortgage Rates Unchanged Ahead of Important Inflation Data

Mortgage rates were perfectly unchanged compared to yesterday’s levels for the average lender. This wasn’t a huge surprise considering the absence of any high stakes economic data, but tomorrow could be a different story. Rates are driven by bonds and the economy is one of the primary sources of motivation for the bond market. In

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