Economic News: Wednesday brought us the Durable Goods Orders & New Home Sales. Durable Goods Orders came in line with expectations and were 18% higher than year ago levels. New Home Sales were up over 18% and recorded the largest drop in inventory in 42 years. Thursday's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) numbers came in below the annualized forecast of 3.5% and was revised down to 3.0%. This was a bit disappointing but growth does continue. Jobless Claims were also a bit worse than the forecasters were expecting but there was, once again, improvement in the four week moving average. Friday's Personal Income and Outlays results were mixed. While income gains came in at the high end of estimates personal spending cooled a bit.
Mortgage Markets: The 10 Year Note has lost a little ground as the week has gone by. This morning's 10 Year Note is yielding 3.31%. In addition, the Mortgage Backed Securities are stable ahead of the holiday weekend. If you are looking to close on a purchase or refinance in the next 21 days it is a great time to lock in a great rate.
Upcoming Next Week: Tuesday: ISM Manufacturing Index. Wednesday: Pending Home Sales Index. Thursday: ADP Employment Report & Jobless Claims. Friday: Employment Situation
Stay tuned for the East Bay Mortgage Update This Coming Tuesday...Have a Great Memorial Day Weekend
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Economic News: Monday's Existing Home Sales numbers came in at the top end of estimates reflecting the influence of the tax credits. Total housing supply jumped 11.5% to 8.4 months which was a little disappointing and may put pressure on any upward price movement in the next few months. Case-Shiller's Home Price Index numbers were announced this morning and were basically flat for March. Look for a jump in the April numbers since buyers were out in force to secure a contract before the tax credit deadline. Finally, Consumer Confidence was well above expectations showing signs of life within the consumer segment. 
Mortgage Markets: The 10 Year Note has made strong gains and dropped to its lowest level since April 2009. This is due to the ongoing concerns within the EU countries, global growth and debt fears, new financial market regulations and an uptick in worries about the North/South Korea situation. This morning's 10 Year Note is yielding 3.14%. In addition, the Mortgage Backed Securities are doing well but not as good as Treasuries. If you are looking to close on a purchase or refinance in the next 21 days now is the time to look at locking in a super rate.
Economic News: Monday's Housing Market Index figures were at the highest level in 2.5 years revealing that home builders are feeling a little more optimistic about the industry. This was confirmed in Tuesday's Housing Starts numbers. An underlying weakness in the report was that new permits were lower which could be attributed to the expiration of the federal tax credits for buyers. With the expiration builders may be a little more cautious concerning future demand levels. The Producer Price Index (PPI) came in at the low end of consensus lending to the belief that inflation is not a near term problem. The "Core Rate" was actually greater than expected due to higher auto pricing but this was shrugged off. Wednesday's Consumer Price Index (CPI)mirrored the PPI data. Lastly, Thursday's Jobless Claims report was disappointing with initial jobless claims moving to a 5 week high. The four week moving average still showed improvement from the mid-April level.
Mortgage Markets: The 10 Year Note has made strong gains and dropped to its lowest level in months. This is due to the ongoing concerns within the EU countries and global growth and debt fears. This morning's 10 Year Note is yielding 3.18%; a far cry from the 4.00% we touched on an intraday level not long ago. In addition, the Mortgage Backed Securities are gaining as well. Although rates still may trend a little lower now is a terrific time to lock in a fantastic mortgage rate.
Economic News: April Retail Sales results were announced this morning at the high end of expectations and showed an 8.8% gain over the April 2009 numbers. The Industrial Production Figures also came in at the high end of expectations and continued the sentiment that the US Economy is recovering. Finally, Consumer Sentiment came in at the low end of estimates and was not as strong as the February & March figures. As the economy slowly begins to recover we still need to see an uptick in capacity utilization and average hours worked before we will see the overall unemployment rate decline.
Economic News: The equity markets have continued their recovery from the sell off last week. The enormous financing package put together to stabilize the EU is still being digested by the global markets and we will surely see some bumps in the road along the way. The International Trade numbers announced today came in within consensus. The March trade gap widened to $40.4 Billion.
Economic News: The equity markets are off to a great start as an agreement over the weekend was reached regarding the sovereign debt issue within the EU Countries. The nearly $1 Trillion dollar package was announced over the weekend and has soothed the markets starting the week. As a side note Fannie Mae has asked for another $8.4 Billion in Aid after reporting losses of $11.5 Billion for the first quarter. Freddie Mac last week requested an additional $10.60 Billion after posting a first quarter loss of $6.7 Billion
Mortgage Markets: The wild swings yesterday and today in the worldwide equity markets has paved the way for some of the best interest rates in the last few months. The 10 Year Note has rallied all the way back to 3.41%. If you are closing in the next 30-45 days now is a good time to take advantage of the turmoil which has led to a rally in the debt markets and consider locking in your rate.
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