Mortgage Commentary on Massachusetts Mortgage Rate Trends
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Tuesday’s bond market has opened flat despite early stock weakness. The stock markets are showing relatively minor losses with the Dow down 45 points and the Nasdaq down 2 points. The bond market is currently nearly unchanged from yesterday’s close, but we will likely see an improvement in this morning’s Massachusetts mortgage rates of approximately .125 of a discount point due to strength late yesterday.
The stock markets are reacting to a rash of earnings news and concerns about overseas issues, particularly Greece. The earnings reports continue this week with Apple announcing results later today. Earnings from overseas companies are raising some concerns about the impact that Europe’s financial crisis is having on the global economy. Unfortunately, bonds and Massachusetts mortgage rates have not benefited yet as traders seem to be content at current yields until we get to the heart of this week’s agenda. It starts tonight with the President’s State of the Union speech at 9:00 PM ET and moves into some key events tomorrow.
Tomorrow does not have any relevant economic reports scheduled for release that could affect Massachusetts mortgage rates, but we do have the adjournment of the two-day FOMC meeting that began today. It will adjourn at 12:30 PM ET rather than the traditional 2:15 PM because Fed Chairman Bernanke will be hosting a press conference at 2:15 PM tomorrow. The meeting itself is expected to yield no change to short-term interest rates, but traders will be looking for any indication of the Fed’s next move and when they may make it. This is one of four meetings this year that will be followed by a press conference hosted by Fed Chairman Bernanke and should include some forecasts and outlooks for key short-term interest rates.
Also tomorrow is the first of two Treasury auctions that may influence Massachusetts mortgage pricing. 5-year Notes will be sold tomorrow while 7-year Notes go to sale Thursday. If the sales are met with a strong demand from investors, the broader bond market should thrive, possibly leading to slightly lower Massachusetts mortgage rates. On the other hand, weakness in the auctions could fuel more bond selling and an upward revision to rates. The results of each sale are posted at 1:00 PM ET each day.
I suspect we will see an extremely active day tomorrow with the markets reacting to tonight’s State of the Union address during early trading, then having the FOMC meeting adjournment and Treasury auction to deal with mid-day. And then heading into the middle of the afternoon, we get to watch the press conference influence the markets and Massachusetts mortgage rates. I would not be surprised to see at least one intra-day revision to Massachusetts mortgage pricing tomorrow.
Lock or Float Advice based on Massachusetts Mortgage Rate Trends
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…
Float if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days…
Float 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 based on Massachusetts mortgage rate trends. Your individual situation may be different.
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