Monthly Archives: July 2007

The Bureau of Labor Statistics says that the average American family spends $614 a month on automobiles. This includes finance payments, gasoline, repairs, and insurance. Let’s relate that $614 per month to home buying. Based on a 6.500 percent, fully-amortizing … Continue reading →

Momentum trading and safe haven buying created a roller coaster-like week for mortgage rates last week. This week, mortgage bonds should trade on data, by contrast. Tuesday, at 8:30 A.M. ET, three important releases hit the wires: Producer Price Index … Continue reading →

Weakness in Retail Sales data this morning is causing a knee-jerk reaction in trading circles, edging mortgage rates lower this morning. Against expectations of a flat reading, retailers reported a 0.9% decrease in sales volume in June. This is the … Continue reading →

Credit “piggybacking” used to be a handy way to boost a person’s credit score in order to help them get a home loan approval. Starting in September, it’s going the way of the Dodo bird. Piggybacking involves linking one person’s … Continue reading →

On the week, mortgage rates are slightly improved as traders keep a watchful eye on tomorrow’s Retail Sales report. Largely, markets want to know how Americans are using their disposable income. Are they buying big-ticket items like automobiles? Are they … Continue reading →

Before paying down your mortgage balance with extra principal payments, be sure to plan carefully. The biggest risk in lending for banks is that you will suddenly stop paying your mortgage. In that event, the banks hope that you owe … Continue reading →

Crude oil prices have been increasing lately and that tends to lead to higher gas prices at the pump. The heat map at right is courtesy of GasBuddy.com, a Web site that tracks gas prices on a national, state, county, … Continue reading →

As expected, the holiday-shortened week led to extreme volatility in mortgage rates, led by better-than-expected job growth and rising wages for workers. In conjunction, these two data points lead to increased consumer spending and the prospect of higher spending pushes … Continue reading →

On a stronger-than-expected jobs report and upward revisions to April and May’s figures, mortgage rates are moving higher this morning. Against an expectation of 120,000, the Bureau of Labor and Statistics reported that 132,000 new jobs were created in June. … Continue reading →

Mortgage markets are making like last night’s fireworks, exploding in the sky with a bang. There are three main factors pushing rates higher today: Bank of England raised their interest rates by 0.25% and foreshadowed future increases European Central Bank … Continue reading →