Mortgage Rates Spike On Strong Retail Sales Data. Could 4 Percent Rates Be Done?

If consumer spending is a key to economic recovery, the nation is on its way. Monday, the Census Bureau released national Retail Sales figures for October and, for the second straight month, the data surged past expectation. Last month’s retail figures jumped 1.2 percent — the largest monthly...

What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week : November 15, 2010

In a holiday-shortened trading week, mortgage markets tanked last week, casting doubt on whether the bond market’s 7-month bull run will continue. Fears of inflation caused conforming mortgage rates to rise in Washington. Last week marked the first sizable mortgage rate increase over the course of 7...

October 2010 : 5 States Account For Half Of The Nation’s Foreclosure Activity

According to October data from foreclosure-tracking firm RealtyTrac, foreclosure filings topped 300,000 for the 20th straight month last month as 1 in every 389 U.S. homes received a foreclosure filing. The generic term “foreclosure filing” is defined to include default notices, scheduled...

Fed Survey : Mortgage Guidelines Tighten Further, Freeze Out Would-Be Refinancers

It’s getting tougher to get approved for a mortgage. Still. In its quarterly survey of senior loan officers around the country, the Federal Reserve asked whether “prime” residential mortgage guidelines” have tightened in the prior 3 months. A “prime” borrower typically...

Pending Home Sales Slip In September, Suggesting A Buyer’s Market Until January

After 3 straight months of improvement, the Pending Home Sales Index slid lower in September. As compared to August, September’s reading fell 2 percent. A “pending home sale” is a home under contract to sell, but not yet closed. The data is drawn from a combination of local real estate...