The Federal Open Market Committee meets today for the last time in 2009.  It’s a 2-day meeting and the Fed is expected to leave the Fed Funds Rate near 0.000 percent. But that doesn’t mean mortgage rates won’t change. See, a major misperception among the public is that the Federal Reserve sets mortgage rates. That’s [...]

Mortgage markets worsened for a second consecutive week last week amid debt default concerns and stronger-than-expected economic data. Dollars left the bond market and mortgage rates suffered. After re-reaching an all-time low December 1, mortgage rates have since rolled back to mid-November levels. Rates are still low right now. Just not as low. And meanwhile, [...]

If you wonder what mortgage rates and home affordability will look like next year, today’s Retail Sales data may hold your answer. Versus October, November’s ex-auto sales were up by more than 1 percent. Analysts expected the increase, but not an increase of this magnitude. “Ex-auto” means that motor vehicles and parts are excluded from the data. Home [...]

Since peaking in July 2009, national foreclosure activity has dropped through 4 consecutive months. On a month-to-month basis, November’s foreclosure activity fell another 8 percent. However, national foreclosure activity continues to be dominated by a minority of states. As reported by RealtyTrac.com, more than half of November’s foreclosure-related activity sourced from just 4 states: California [...]

The average family spends $2,200 per year in electric bills and the average home is responsible for twice the amount of greenhouse gases than the average automobile. Whether you want to save money or save the environment, this 5-minute piece from the NBC Today Show is for you. In it, you’ll learn that just by [...]

For many American homeowners, interest paid on a mortgage is tax-deductible in the year in which it was paid. Knowing that, eligible homeowners can increase their 2009 tax deductions just by making their January 2010 mortgage payment before the end of the year. By paying in 2009, the mortgage interest paid can be applied against 2009′s itemized tax deductions [...]

Mortgage markets finally reversed course last week, selling off with fury and causing prices to plummet. When bonds prices fall, rates rise. The action broke a multi-week winning streak, much to the disappointment of rate shoppers everywhere. Rate hikes came in stages. First, early in the week, mortgage bonds fell out of favor as traders [...]

This morning’s jobs report is causing mortgage rates to rise, capping a week during which rates have already jumped 3/8 percent off all-time lows. The government’s November Non-Farm Payrolls report reinforced the notion that the recession is nearly over, if not over already. Just 11,000 jobs were lost last month — much fewer than analysts had expected — [...]

Tis the season to do shopping — and get bombarded with offers to open credit cards. The deals are tempting, too. ”Open a charge card today” and save up to 20% on your purchase. Considering that the average Black Friday ticket was $343, that’s $68 saved per store. For big-ticket items like televisions, the savings are even [...]

When a home seller accepts a contract on an MLS-listed property, the property’s status changes from “Active” to “Pending”. This means the home is scheduled to sell, but not yet sold. Each month, the National Association of Realtors® tallies the number of pending homes and publishes the data as the Pending Homes Sales Index report. In October, for [...]