More Purchase Power For Homebuyers With New Conforming Loan Limits
New increases on conforming loan limits mean that you can expect to afford more for less when you begin shopping for a home. That’s... »
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Market News
How Homebridge is Responding to COVID-19
Jun 2 2020Since the outbreak of COVID-19 in the United States 3 months ago, many of our normal routines have been altered on a collective level. Companies such as Homebridge are no exception. Throughout the... »
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A Lesson in Supply and Demand
May 8 2020One week after home loan rates failed to improve further in the face of multiple bond-friendly stories, such as low inflation, high unemployment claims, and the Fed's continued commitment to purchase bonds, we... »
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Is This the Bottom?
May 1 2020Home loan rates continue to hover near all-time lows, but there are three reasons why they should have improved but didn’t.
Let's take a look at some of the “bond-friendly” news from this week... »
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Stabilization in the MBS Market
Apr 25 2020One of the major effects of the coronavirus was the enormous destabilization of the mortgage-backed securities (MBS) market back in mid-March.
MBS pricing and trading activity determine home loan rates, so a big and... »
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The Unemployment Line is Growing
Apr 17 2020The leading indicator on the health of the job market is the Initial Jobless Claims report, which essentially tells us the length of the unemployment line. And that line just grew.
Over the past... »
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Coronavirus Fallout to Hit Homeowners
Apr 3 2020The Coronavirus has impacted millions of Americans across the country due to job loss and furloughs making it difficult, and sometimes impossible, for homeowners to make their mortgage payments.
The U.S. government has stepped... »
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Liquidity Defined
Mar 27 2020This past week, thanks to the Federal Reserve, home loan rates declined. The high uncertainty around the coronavirus and its impact on homeowners and mortgage payments created a dire need for liquidity in... »
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Rate Movements Explained
Mar 13 2020This past week was a head-scratcher as home loan rates ticked up slightly week over week despite the 10-year Note yield hitting a historic low of 0.31% and stocks enduring heavy losses. Typically,... »
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How Low Can We Go?
Mar 6 2020Home loan rates touched all-time lows this past week, fueling refinance activity and creating a sense of urgency for homebuyers to lock in purchase loans.
The question many people are asking is, "how low... »
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Recovering From Coronavirus
Feb 7 2020This past week was a bit rough for the bond market as home loan rates steadily ticked higher and off the best levels in three years.
The coronavirus has been a tailwind to the... »
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Rates Decline Again
Jan 31 2020The coronavirus outbreak in China continued to grip the financial markets this week. The total affected and number of deaths rose sharply throughout the week suggesting the virus is not yet contained.
Stocks hate... »
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Back to Fundamentals
Jan 17 2020This past week was filled with so much good news — the biggest of which was the signing of Phase One of the U.S. and China trade pact.
This trade deal is a very... »
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The Good News Continues
Jan 10 2020This past week, we watched home loan rates tick modestly higher and retreat from three-year lows.
Why? There are three main reasons:
U.S and Iran. On Wednesday, the de-escalation of tensions between the U.S. and... »
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Nice Start to 2020
Jan 3 2020The new year and new decade started, and good news: some things don't change. Stocks picked up right where they left off in 2019 by touching all-time highs. And bonds, which also performed... »
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Global Improvement
Dec 20 20192019 was an incredible year for stocks, which finished the final trading week of the year at all-time highs. Generally speaking, when stocks go higher, so do rates. And that was the case... »
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Goldilocks 2.0
Dec 13 2019“Let the Good times roll...” (The Cars) As we enter the final weeks of 2019, the housing and home lending sectors have enjoyed a good year thanks to a "Goldilocks" scenario of a... »
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Changes That Could Affect Rates
Dec 6 2019There are rumors that our Fed is considering an idea to abandon its present 2% target rate for inflation in favor of a floating target where inflation would be allowed to rise above 2%... »
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A Great Housing Backdrop
Nov 22 2019That famous line describes the current wonderful backdrop for housing and the overall U.S. economy. Many are wondering what lies ahead for housing as we enter 2020.
There are many reasons why the U.S.... »
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A Goldilocks Economy
Nov 15 2019“Looking ahead, my colleagues and I see a sustained expansion of economic activity, a strong labor market, and inflation near our symmetric 2% objective as most likely.”
– Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, November 13,... »
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How Fast Rates Can Change
Nov 8 2019Right now, the biggest news story to follow is the U.S. and China trade negotiations.
This past week, home loans started inching higher but were "saved" momentarily midweek when reports came out suggesting a... »
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Fed Takes Action
Nov 1 2019This past week the Federal Reserve cut the Fed Funds Rate for the third time this year, by .25%. Along with the rate cut, the Fed released a statement that suggested a "pause"... »
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The Remedy for Higher Rates
Oct 25 2019This past week home loan rates were essentially unchanged from the previous week, breaking a trend of higher rates since the beginning of October.
Bonds hate good news and there is still plenty to... »
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Optimism Hurts Rates
Oct 18 2019This past week home loan rates ticked up, yet remain just above 3-year lows.
Here are 3 reasons why:
Solid corporate earnings and future positive guidance from many public companies were a pleasant surprise... »
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Bullard Wants More
Sep 27 2019This past week was a classic example of how good news means bad news for bonds and home loan rates.
A little trade deal with Japan, solid housing numbers, and hopeful news on the... »
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Three Things the Fed Said
Sep 20 2019This past week the Federal Reserve cut the Fed Funds Rate for the second time this year, lowering the rate to 2.00%. Remember that the Fed Funds Rate is a short-term, overnight rate... »
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Stocks and Mortgage Rates Rise
Sep 13 2019This past week home loan rates ticked up sharply from the previous week leaving many wondering – have rates bottomed?
For would-be homebuyers, real estate agents, and folks working in the housing industry, here... »
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Too Much of a Good Thing
Sep 6 2019Bonds and home loan rates hate good news. So, the influx of positive news abroad coupled with strong jobs data here in the U.S. pressured mortgage bonds lower and home loan rates higher.
The... »
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Fed vs. Recession
Aug 23 2019Home loan rates finished this past week essentially where they began, near 3-year lows.
With all the chatter of a global recession and elevated fears that the U.S. will slip into a recession thanks... »
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Indecision Ahead of Huge News Week
Jul 26 2019The U.S. Bond market traded in a tight sideways range, leaving home loan rates essentially at unchanged levels week over week. However, the technical picture reveals Bond market indecision as prices trade near... »
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Summer Sideways Trend Continues
Jul 19 2019This past week had little economic data for the financial markets to react to. As a result, home loan rates have inched higher though they remain near multi-year lows.
It is normal to see... »
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A Slow News Week Ahead
Jul 12 2019This past week, Fed Chair Jerome Powell reaffirmed the Federal Reserve's dovish position as he testified on Capitol Hill, thereby paving the way for the first Fed rate cut in 10 years later... »
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Calm Before the G20 Storm
Jun 28 2019“It's like watching paint dry.”
That was this past week as financial markets around the globe traded in a bit of a calm, sideways pattern ahead of arguably the most important economic event of... »
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Rate Decline Stalls
Jun 14 2019What a difference a month makes. In May, stocks fell sharply, and interest rates declined each week. June has been a different story. The Fed has signaled rate cuts are likely coming. Stocks... »
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Fed Cuts and Home Loan Rates
Jun 7 2019
"Let the good times roll" (The Cars) — For the sixth consecutive week home loan rates declined, once again fueled by the ongoing trade tensions between the US and China.
However, the decline in rates... »
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In a move guaranteed to increase Homebridge Financial Services, Inc.’s robust mortgage lending services, Homebridge has acquired the assets of a majority of HomeStreet Bank’s stand-alone home loan centers. HomeStreet Bank is a... »
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Interest Rate Disconnect
May 31 2019
"Sell in May and go away" — an old Wall Street investment strategy which suggests not owning stocks during the Summer months.
That investment strategy certainly worked this past May as stocks declined each... »
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Trade With China Causes Uncertainty
May 17 2019
The biggest story in the financial markets and around the globe is the ongoing US/China trade negotiations.
At the moment, there is no resolution and it appears there will be no resolution for at least several... »
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Americans Favor Owning
May 10 2019The Census Bureau recently reported a homeownership rate of 64.2% in the first quarter of 2019, up from the 10-year low of 63.7% in the first quarter of 2015.
A recent study by LendingTree... »
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