4th
Issue of January 2009
Interest Rate Articles from
the Experts…
MarketWatch, January 22 - Builder Offers
3.99% Rate on Mortgage
Horsham, Penn.-based Toll this week started offering a 3.99% fixed mortgage
rate for loans $417,000 or below for 30 years with no points, one of -- if not
the -- industry's lowest rates, one well below the national average of just
below 5%.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/builder-offers-399-rate-mortgage/story.aspx?guid={2F10AA07-AB57-426C-9611-C51404C1C889}&dist=TNMostMailed
Seeking Alpha, January 15 - Rates,
Applications and Approvals
Interesting news this morning on mortgage rates and applications. According to
the Mortgage Bankers Association, mortgage applications rose 15.8% percent
overall in the last week, with a 25.6% jump in refinancing apps drove most of
that increase. Attempts to refinance now account for 85% of all applications.
And, remarkably, the average 30-year mortgage rate fell from 5.07% to 4.89%(!).
http://seekingalpha.com/article/114949-rates-applications-and-approvals
Seeking Alpha, January 12 - We May See
Mortgage Rates Fall to 3.5%
According to Freddie Mac (FRE), the average 30 year fixed rate mortgage dropped
for the 10th consecutive week to a new low of 5.01%. This is the lowest rate
reported by Freddie Mac since they began keeping track in 1971.
http://seekingalpha.com/article/114350-we-may-see-mortgage-rates-fall-to-3-5
Realty Times, January 9 - Long-Term Rates
for Tenth Consecutive Week Setting Yet Another New Low
Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage
Market Survey (PMMS) in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged
5.01 percent with an average 0.6 point for the week ending January 8, 2009,
down from last week when it averaged 5.10 percent. Last year at this time, the
30-year FRM averaged 5.87 percent. The 30-year FRM has not been lower since
Freddie Mac started the Primary Mortgage Market Survey in 1971.
http://realtytimes.com/rtpages/20090109_rates.htm
Seeking Alpha, January 7 - New Mortgage
Bankruptcy Bill Does Not Address Real Problem
The plight of homeowners delinquent on their mortgages has been the focus of
much debate lately. There have generally been two major lines of thinking:
http://seekingalpha.com/article/113614-new-mortgage-bankruptcy-bill-does-not-address-real-problem?source=email
MarketWatch, December 24 - Fixed-rate
mortgages continue to fall
Fixed-rate mortgage rates fell again this week, with the
30-year fixed-rate mortgage setting another record low, at least since Freddie
Mac began doing its weekly survey in the early 1970s.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/rates-30-year-mortgages-lowest-since/story.aspx?guid={71F28F5C-0B7E-4310-B47B-6668C5B337B4}&dist=morenews_ts
Big Builder Online, December 22 - 2-year notes dip
to record low in Treasury auction
The interest rate on two-year Treasury notes has fallen to the lowest level on
record.
http://www.bigbuilderonline.com/industry-news.asp?sectionID=363&articleID=833858
The Arizona Republic, December 21 - Boosting the
credit-scoring system
Did flawed algorithms for determining consumer credit scores contribute to the
subprime-loan disaster?
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/business/articles/2008/12/21/20081221biz-insider1221anderson.html
MarketWatch, December 18 - 30-year
fixed-rate mortgage at 37-year low
The benchmark 30-year fixed-rate mortgage tumbled to a
national average 5.17% this week, the lowest level since Freddie Mac began its
weekly rate survey in 1971.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/30-year-mortgage-lowest-37-years/story.aspx?guid=1B978809-8856-4FA1-A367-2B0794F05294
Seeking Alpha, December 17 - Government
Thinking Hard About 4.5% Mortgage Plan. Good!
The government is still thinking about getting into the
4.5%-fixed-rate-mortgage business, says the FT:
http://seekingalpha.com/article/111055-government-thinking-hard-about-4-5-mortgage-plan-good
MarketWatch, December 16 - Fed cuts rates
to record low range of zero to 0.25%
The Federal Reserve pulled out all the stops in its
campaign to save the U.S. economy Tuesday, slashing interest rates to just
above zero and promising to try an array of new economic measures to stimulate
spending.
http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/fed-slashes-rates-almost-zero/story.aspx?guid={CA4128E7-21B4-4563-A28E-9170AEBFC789}
HousingWire, December 15 - Fitch: Alt-A
Mortgages Deteriorating More Rapidly than Expected
Citing “a rapid deterioration of U.S. Alt-A RMBS performance,” Fitch Ratings again took the hatchet to its previous assumptions
for Alt-A mortgages on Monday morning, revising its surveillance methodology
and updating loss projections for all U.S. Alt-A RMBS.
http://www.housingwire.com/2008/12/15/fitch-alt-a-mortgages-deteriorating-more-rapidly-than-expected/
Big Builder Online, December 11 - Lockhart: Rates
Could Fall Below 4%
Government efforts to provide easier credit to consumers and jump-start
flagging home sales could push mortgage rates "well below 4 percent,"
a federal regulator said Wednesday.
http://www.bigbuilderonline.com/industry-news.asp?sectionID=363&articleID=827172
MarketWatch December 11 - Rates on
fixed-rate mortgages drop again
Rates on fixed-rate mortgages fell again this week,
bringing the 30-year fixed-rate to its lowest level in more than four years,
according to Freddie Mac's weekly survey, released on Thursday.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/30-year-fixed-rate-lowest-since-march/story.aspx?guid={CC3859CD-9BC3-4761-B743-52C2EC69CFCE}&dist=TNMostRead
These are links to just some of the
interesting articles we have read about interest rates in the real estate
market recently. The opinions expressed
by these experts are not necessarily shared by Ultimate Information Systems,
Inc. If you have “expert” links to share
with your peers…Let us know.