It's fast and furious when deciding to Lock or Float

Mortgage Rates at 3.5 Percent, until Noon yesterday

 

Mortgage rates were widely available at 3.5 percent for some of the day yesterday.  At any other time from the middle of 2013 through the end of 2015, that's not something that very many people thought they'd be able to say (or read, or think!).   


As is often the case with financial markets, the biggest, quickest moves demand an occasional pause. The bounce prompted most lenders to revise rate sheets higher in the afternoon.

Still, it's a good wake-up call as to the potentially temporary nature of the long-term lows we have been enjoying.  Markets run hard.  Sometimes they can surprise you as to how hard and how fast they change.  And then at some point, the running is over, or worse: we run in the other direction.  

There's no telling whether that's the case with yesterdays intraday bounce, but it's always a risk that can factor into one's decision-making process when it comes to locking or floating.
 
                    Call me for help with your purchase or refinance mortgage questions. 
  

Grant money is available!

Purchasing a home in Clearfield city limits and also in all of Davis County just got a whole lot easier!  Grant money for 2015 (loan closing must happen before December 31, 2015) is currently available and on January 1, 2016, MORE grant money will be announced and available. 

Grant Money available!

Income limits are generous and the Grant money is forgiven (doesn't need to be paid back) after 7 years!  FREE money to be used for down payment or closing costs in conjunction with any fixed rate mortgage loan program!

I have the Grant application forms, reserve your Grant money today by calling me today!

Rate Lock recommendation continues after Fed announcement

Lock!

Rates moved up quickly today causing lenders to increase rates by .125%-.25% (FHA and Conventional loans respectively).  Much of the information released today was misleading because what happens on Thursday and Friday isn't reflected in their reports.



For options and rates call me.  The move up could be something temporary and as the markets settle, December's most likely target identified by the Fed yesterday could be the new line in the sand and best rates in 28 weeks could still be available for awhile longer.  :)

Here's the link to the excellent article to explain more about why it's important to have a close relationship with your loan originator who can call you BEFORE rates go up and you can lock your rate BEFORE the markets change: Reports are too slow, too late

Why home ownership makes sense financially

A recent Harvard Study (The rent crisis is about to get a lot worse) conducted to explore the cost and benefit of renting vs buying found that the number of  households which could be spending at least half of their income on rent could increase 25% (increasing to 15 million households) over the next decade.

Eric Belsky is Managing Director of the Joint Center of Housing Studies at Harvard University. He also currently serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Housing Research and Housing Policy Debate. Last year he released a paper on homeownership - The Dream Lives On: the Future of Homeownership in America. In his paper, Belsky reveals five financial reasons people should consider buying a home.

Here are the five reasons, each followed by an excerpt from the study:

1.) Housing is typically the one leveraged investment available. 


“Few households are interested in borrowing money to buy stocks and bonds and few lenders are willing to lend them the money. As a result, homeownership allows households to amplify any appreciation on the value of their homes by a leverage factor. Even a hefty 20 percent down payment results in a leverage factor of five so that every percentage point rise in the value of the home is a 5 percent return on their equity. With many buyers putting 10 percent or less down, their leverage factor is 10 or more.”

Rate lock recommendation and increases in home value benefits

Investors should not be too quick to write off an interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve in December, despite market expectations increasingly looking to early next year as more likely, the former executive vice president at the New York Fed said today.



Rates continue to hover at a 28 week low and best execution for 30 year fixed rates at 3.75%-3.875% for borrowers with top tier scenarios.  I am recommending locking at these current rates for purchase and refinance as the market weighs in on China and other world economies to predict the direction the Federal Reserve will take in timing of the anticipated rate hike.

Home values continue their steady upward climb and my experience with multiple offers on correctly priced homes in the purchase market continues.  The highest success of offer acceptance in a competitive home sale market which we currently have is for clients who have a FULL credit approval letter, backed by a 3 bureau merged credit report, an Automated Underwriting System approval and supported with my underwriting teams review of income and asset documentation.

Mortgage rates and home values are also helping borrowers drop Private Mortgage Insurance on their conventional loans with a refinance to a new loan at lower 15 year rates and FHA borrowers convert their FHA loans to a new conventional loan with lower rate and no monthly mortgage insurance.

Call me at 801-540-5108 and we can review your purchase or refinance options!

Rents are going through the roof!

Rent costs are rising quickly!

Single family rentals account for 13% of the overall housing stock (up from 9% in 2005) and rents are heating up!  Rents are higher than they should be given the underlying real estate values. 

As a result of the higher cost of rent relative to overall household income, first time home buyer's who have now entered the market (first time home buyer home purchases are the highest this year since 2009) are discovering the value of purchasing rather than renting. 

With appreciation in home values ticking along at 4% per year nationally (and regionally 6-8% and higher in some hot selling neighborhoods), coupled with historically low interest rates, and home financing is once again available to home buyer's with good credit, reasonable debt obligations and little or no down payment. 

Purchase a home today because all the stars are lining up!

With after tax rates for home financing in the 3% range, home buyer's today are using their home purchase as a financial leveraging tool and will payoff debt that has a higher interest rate, like credit cards, student loans, department store cards and car loans, and paying off their mortgage LAST.


If a home purchase can again be viewed as an investment (steady appreciation) and as a financial leverage tool (payoff higher interest rate debt first and your mortgage last), the only thing we need to add to the equation is a beautiful house to buy for fun and financial success to begin!

Call Marty Qualls at 801-540-5108 for help with any of your mortgage questions.   

What are Japanese Candlesticks? Why are they important?

I watch the bond market, stock market, futures, inflation, unemployment, housing demand, refinance and home purchase activity, world news, national news, political developments, gas prices and yes, I even watch the weather for signs of what the market will be doing in the future.

Giving reliable advice to my clients as to whether they should LOCK or FLOAT their interest rate when they have a mortgage application with me is a major goal of mine.  Their decision (based on my advice) has long term consequences and if they (and I) choose wisely so that they can maximize their investment return on their mortgage.

A mortgage is another form of investment strategy, but this is a whole blog post to come in the future.  I look forward to talking about the value of a "Big FAT 30 year mortgage" in a future Blog Post.

But today, what I want to talk about is what I use to gauge what is going on in the market TODAY, right this moment, and is something available to me and it's called "Japanese Candlesticks".  I would like to explain why this is valuable and important to me AND to my clients who are relying on my expertise and guidance,

What you see below is today's Japanese Candlesticks Chart (4%, 30 year bond yields) and it is showing lots of green "candles".  Green is Good!  It means that mortgage rates are improving or the market is favorable.  The last green candle on the far right of the chart (right next to the S1 in the blue box) is today's market activity.

Tomorrow's rates should (unless the market changes dramatically overnight or in the early hours of trading in New York tomorrow morning) be about the same, possibly better than they were today.

Yesterday's rates were worse than today's (the red candle shows a lower price, higher mortgage rate than today's), and so forth backwards.  Over the past 17 trading days the rates have been close to, above or just below the best rates in 17 months (best since May 8, 2013).

The S2 line, below the candlesticks, is the FLOOR of SUPPORT and with the rates close to this floor, if the bond prices begin to break below this floor, like happened yesterday for two hours, we COULD see the mortgage bond prices begin to deteriorate and we could see these great rates go away  (go up!) and this could be forever or temporarily, that is the gamble of NOT taking advantage of rates today.  

Call me today if I can help with analysis for your mortgage refinance or purchase.  :)

What's FHA financing all about?

FHA loans in 1991:
When I became a mortgage loan originator in 1991, I couldn't believe that there was a loan product which allowed all of the down payment to be gifted!  "Are you sure this is true?", I asked my mortgage lender buddy who had come over to the mortgage department at the bank we were with just 6 months before.  "It's true!  Can you believe how great of a program it is?"  That was my first impression of how great the FHA loan was because it lowered the barriers to home ownership for first time buyers.

FHA loans today: 
The FHA loan is a great fit for first time home buyer's and others with specific lending needs.  Since 1991 I have learned much about lending and about FHA.  I now know that FHA is a loan insurer not a lender, and that the loan is available to both first time home buyer's needing 100% financing (Utah Housing Loans/State Bond Programs), and it's a great alternative for buyer's who have less than perfect credit (my company, Primary Residential Mortgage, has a 580 credit score FHA loan program!).  FHA offers streamline loans to allow homeowners to lower their interest rate with NO COST (ZERO will be added to their existing loan balance, no appraisal required).

With FHA rates at their lowest in 17 months ( June, 2013), this is a great time for buyer's and current FHA loan holders to utilize purchase and refinance options!  Call me today for a more thorough analysis and discussion about what program's fit your needs the best.

Lots of buyer activity for Q4, 2014

The fall months are no longer a real estate dead zone, and there is still plenty of action happening after Labor Day through Christmas.  An article in the October 18, 2014 Ogden Standard Examiner said that Davis County home sales were up 7% and Weber County were up 4% when compared to the same August time in 2013. Pending sales (homes under contract which will close in October) were up 22%, showing significant momentum for home sales as we enter into the beginning of Q4.  

By Brendon DeSimone on 26 Sep 2014

Fall officially began Sept. 23, but that doesn’t mean you should scrap plans for selling your home this year. In fact, October, November and December can actually be good months to sell. Now is the time to plan for it if you’ve even considered putting your home on the market.

Now that rates have fallen, HOW should I refinance my home loan?

Refinance today before rates go up!

It's an interesting study just completed and the findings released.  The average age of a refinanced loan is now 7.3 years, up two years from what it was last year and 3 times as long as the latest 10 year average.  In other words, there are over $800 million in mortgage loans today which have a higher than 5% interest rate!  Yours may be one of them.

With current 30 year rates hovering near 4% and 15 year at 3.5%, there can be substantial savings associated with refinancing.

But what about the cost associated with refinancing?
Does a homeowner REALLY need to save 1% on their mortgage to justify doing a refinance?
Why is 1% savings the "magic" number?

There are two ways to look at doing a refinance; 1) the rule of thumb 1% savings in interest rate, and 2) ZERO closing cost refinance-PURE savings because all you are doing is lowering your interest rate.

Buying a home BEFORE winter

 It’s that time of year, the seasons are changing and with them bring thoughts of the upcoming holidays, family get togethers, and planning for a new year. Those who are on the fence about whether now is the right time to buy don’t have to look much farther to find four great reasons to consider buying a home now, instead of waiting.

Why buying a home before winter makes sense

1. Prices Will Continue to Rise

The Home Price Expectation Survey polls a distinguished panel of over 100 economists, investment strategists, and housing market analysts. Their most recent report released recently projects appreciation in home values over the next five years to be between 11.2% (most pessimistic) and 27.8% (most optimistic). The bottom in home prices has come and gone. Home values will continue to appreciate for years. Waiting no longer makes sense.

2. Mortgage Interest Rates Are Projected to Increase

Although Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey shows that interest rates for a 30-year mortgage have softened recently (best mortgage rate of the year, today 10/7/14), most experts predict that they will begin to rise later this year. The Mortgage Bankers Association, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the National Association of Realtors are in unison projecting that rates will be up almost a full percentage point by the end of next year. An increase in rates will impact YOUR monthly mortgage payment. Your housing expense will be more a year from now if a mortgage is necessary to purchase your next home.

3. Either Way You are Paying a Mortgage

As a recent paper from the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University explains: “Households must consume housing whether they own or rent. Not even accounting for more favorable tax treatment of owning, homeowners pay debt service to pay down their own principal while households that rent pay down the principal of a landlord plus a rate of return. That’s yet another reason owning often does—as Americans intuit—end up making more financial sense than renting.”

4. It’s Time to Move On with Your Life

The ‘cost’ of a home is determined by two major components: the price of the home and the current mortgage rate. It appears that both are on the rise. But, what if they weren’t? Would you wait? Look at the actual reason you are buying and decide whether it is worth waiting. Whether you want to have a great place for your children to grow up, you want your family to be safer or you just want to have control over renovations, maybe it is time to buy.

Bottom Line

If the right thing for you and your family is to purchase a home this year, buying sooner rather than later could lead to substantial savings.  

Mortgage questions?  Call 801-540-5108

Realtor referral available upon request

To get the ball rolling in your discussion about selling your home, I can help with mortgage questions you might have.  As a first step, it's always good to get an analysis of your current situation and to then get a credit approval into your hands.  Call me at 801-540-5108 with your mortgage questions.  

If you need a qualified Real Estate Professional to help with your home search, I can refer you to one of my trusted Realtor Business Partners for a worry free and pleasant home buying experience.