MN Mortgage Matters

FOMC Meeting Summary Yesterday’s FOMC meeting was a bit of a disappointment for investors. However, while the Fed appeared pessimistic about the global economy, the US market seems to still be moving in a positive direction. The weekly MBA mortgage applications revealed a drop in purchases from 8...

Europe Drives U.S. Mortgage Rates to Historical Lows We have seen a flurry of economic activity over the past couple weeks, with mortgage rates near all-time lows once again. Last time we saw rates fall to these lows, it was short lived as supply of new mortgage applications surged to fill (and e...

Do You Have What It Takes To Get The Loan? When looking to get pre-approved for a loan, there are many factors to consider so you get the lowest interest rate possible for your mortgage. Here are the minimums you should consider when applying for a mortgage: The minimum down payment most lenders ...

Looking Into This Week For the second day in a row, mortgages are quietly drifting off the highs. Flows from originators are off to a slow start this week and it looks like liquidity is already starting to wind down for holidays. Supply will likely be light this week and with the usual demand, sh...

Should You Refinance Fixed or ARM? With mortgage rates at historic lows, homeowners are rushing to refinance their homes. A majority of refinancers are choosing fixed-rates; however, is an adjustable-rate mortgage a better option for you? The answer: it depends on your goals. Take a minute to est...

EU Announces New Treaty After staying up all night, the EU finally came out of their summit with a new treaty, ensuring stricter budget rules. The treaty will require European countries to have balanced budgets that will be submitted to the European Commission, and “automated correction mechanism...

Should You Take Advantage of the New HARP? Starting today, Guaranteed Rate will be imposing the following guidelines for the Fannie Mae DU Refi Plus program. Effective for applications taken on or after December 1st, 2011, this program will allow “underwater” borrowers to reduce the balance of wh...

  Mortgage rates have troughed. Or, so it seems. According to Freddie Mac’s weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the average 30-year fixed rate mortgage is 4.00 percent nationwide — roughly the same rate as it’s been for 5 weeks. During that times, rates have ranged between 3.97 and 4.02 percen...

Quick Market Outlook Higher prepay speeds are having less effect on the market than Barney Frank’s retirement announcement did on his dry cleaning bill. Mortgages are better bid out of the gate, with Fannie 3.5s up 7 tics. Despite higher dollar prices (3.5s now trading above 102), flows from orig...

What Everybody Should Know About Europe and Mortgage Rates This may be the most important week Europe has had since 1999. Mortgage rates currently float unchanged as the world waits, and hopes for, a big deal to emerge from the EU summit on December 8-9. Italy came out with a new $40.2 billion au...