Your Daily Mortgage Commentary & Rate Lock Advice for Massachusetts Mortgage Rates
Courtesy of the Massachusetts Mortgage Broker
Thursday’s bond market has opened relatively flat with no highly important economic news being posted. The stock markets have opened with minor losses. The Dow is currently down 21 points while the Nasdaq has slipped 2 points. The bond market is nearly unchanged from yesterday’s close, but we will likely still see a slight improvement in this morning’s Massachusetts mortgage rates due to strength late yesterday.
There were two pieces of economic news posted this morning, but both are considered low importance. January’s Goods and Services Trade Balance reported a $37.3 billion trade deficit in January. This was much lower than expected however, the data is not important enough to directly affect bonds or Massachusetts mortgage rates. It does influence the value of the dollar versus other currencies, which in turn makes U.S. debt more or less attractive to foreign investors as the value of the dollar fluctuates. But it appears this morning’s data has not influenced Massachusetts mortgage rates.
The Labor Department gave us last week’s unemployment figures, saying that 462,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed last week. This was a decline from the previous week, but slightly higher than the 460,000 that was forecast. But, since this report tracks only a week’s worth of claims, it usually takes a wide variance to affect mortgage pricing.
We also have the 30-year Bond auction to watch for today. Results of the sale will be posted at 1:00 PM ET. Yesterday’s 10-year Note auction actually went fairly well. The demand in the sale was much better than expected, but the rates that were bid for were higher than thought also. Overall, the sale can be considered pretty good, especially with the lackluster interest in recent auctions. This raises the possibility of seeing a successful 30-year Bond sale today and possible improvements in this afternoon’s Massachusetts mortgage rates.
There are also two reports scheduled for release tomorrow morning. The first is February’s Retail Sales data at 8:30 AM ET. This data is extremely important to the financial markets because it measures consumer spending. Since consumer spending makes up two-thirds of the U.S. economy, data that is related usually has a big impact on the financial markets. Tomorrow’s report is expected to show a decline of approximately 0.2%. If we get a larger than expected drop, the bond market should thrive and Massachusetts mortgage rates should move lower. But an increase in sales could lead to higher mortgage rates tomorrow.
The second report of the day will be the University of Michigan’s Index of Consumer Sentiment for March at 9:45 AM. This index gives us a measurement of consumer willingness to spend. If confidence is rising, then consumers are more apt to make large purchases. This helps fuel consumer spending and economic growth. A drop in confidence will probably hurt the stock markets and boost bond prices, leading to lower Massachusetts mortgage rates. If the index rises, indicating that confidence is rising and spending will likely rise, we may see mortgage rates move higher late tomorrow morning. It is expected to show a reading of 74.0, which is a slight increase from February’s final reading.
If I were considering purchasing or refinancing a home and predicting likely Massachusetts mortgage rates, I would…
Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days…
Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days…
Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days…
Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now.
This is only a general opinion of what I would do if I were considering whether to lock or float a Massachusetts mortgage based on the current mortgage market. Your individual situation may be different. Contact me if you would like advice for your particular circumstances.
Copyright : Mortgage Commentary
Geof McLaughlin, better known as The Massachusetts Mortgage Broker, is a nationally acclaimed mortgage professional committed to educating and empowering consumers about all things mortgage through his popular Massachusetts Mortgage Broker blog.
Geof is a top loan originator for one of the country’s leading mortgage companies, Mortgage Master Inc, with a proven reputation of offering its clients the best Massachusetts mortgage rates and lowest closing costs. He can be reached directly at 508.656.0055 or at geof@MAMortgageBroker.com.
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