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Lake Forest, IL Real Estate News

By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices rose last week pushing mortgage interest rates lower. Rates spiked higher Monday morning as stocks surged and the Treasury auctions loomed. Fortunately, foreign demand for the notes was solid, helping to keep mortgage rates low. The stock markets remained volatile all week with the Dow Jones index swinging by triple digits both up and down. For the week, interest rates improved by about 1/4 of a discount point. The Fed meeting on Wednesday will be the most important event this week. Productivity and employment figures are likely to move the market. LOOKING AHEAD EconomicIndicator ReleaseDate and Time ConsensusEstimate Analysis Construction Spending Monday,Nov. 2,10:00 am, et Down 0.4% Low importance. An indication of economic strength. Significant wea...
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WASHINGTON -- Senate negotiators reached a tentative deal to extend a tax credit for first-time home buyers, but its passage remains uncertain.The agreement would extend the existing credit for first-time home buyers, worth up to $8,000, while offering a new credit of up to $6,500 for some existing homeowners, Senate aides said. The reduced credit would be available to all home buyers who have been in their current residence for a consecutive five-year period in the past eight years.The new provisions are aimed at broadening availability of the credit beyond first-time buyers and giving the weakened real-estate market a bigger boost while preventing real-estate investors from benefiting.Many property experts have cited the credit as a reason for signs of recovery in the housing market i...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
Market CommentMortgage bond prices ended the week nearly unchanged despite considerable market volatility. Trading was up and down all week. Rates improved the first portion of the week as stocks fell below key psychological levels. Unfortunately a reversal the middle portion of the week eroded the earlier improvements. Data was mixed with tame inflation readings but generally stronger than expected economic activity. For the week, interest rates were near unchanged. The Treasury auctions will take center stage again this week. If there is strong foreign demand it will likely spill over to the mortgage bond market. Weak auctions will likely result in mortgage interest rate increases. Employment cost index data will also be carefully watched. LOOKING AHEAD EconomicIndicator ReleaseDate &...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices rallied Friday pushing mortgage interest rates lower. Bond friendly Core PCE inflation data came in lower than expected. The Fed's most recent estimates call for an increase in this figure by the end of the year. The fact that the data showed lower inflation helped mortgage bonds rally. Consumer confidence came in at a weaker than expected 46.6 mark. Analysts were looking for a reading of 48.7. The Treasury auctions were mixed. The 2 and 5 year note auctions received poor foreign demand while the 7-year auction showed strong foreign demand. For the week interest rates fell by about 3/4 of a discount point.  The employment report will be the most important release this week. With so many data releases expect the market to be very volatile. LOOKING AHEA...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices rallied Friday pushing mortgage interest rates lower. Bond friendly Core PCE inflation data came in lower than expected. The Fed's most recent estimates call for an increase in this figure by the end of the year. The fact that the data showed lower inflation helped mortgage bonds rally. Consumer confidence came in at a weaker than expected 46.6 mark. Analysts were looking for a reading of 48.7. The Treasury auctions were mixed. The 2 and 5 year note auctions received poor foreign demand while the 7-year auction showed strong foreign demand. For the week interest rates fell by about 3/4 of a discount point. The employment report will be the most important release this week. With so many data releases expect the market to be very volatile. LOOKING AHEAD...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices had another volatile week with rates rallying midweek as the additional Treasury debt was absorbed well. Foreign demand for the shorter-term auctions was surprisingly strong while the longer-term auction was average. The US Treasury auctioned $963 billion of debt the first half of this year and is expected to offer $1.1trillion in he second half. Weekly jobless claims were not as bad as expected which didn't help mortgage bond prices. However, falling oil prices helped ease inflation fears and enabled mortgage bond prices to increase, which pushed rates lower. Oil was under $60/barrel last Thursday morning. For the week interest rates improved by about 1/2 of a discount point. The consumer price index data Wednesday will be the most important data thi...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices had another volatile week with rates pushing higher the beginning of the week only to bounce back towards the end. Thursday's employment report was mixed. Non-farm payrolls fell 467,000 in June and the unemployment rate stood at 9.5%. Estimates were for jobs to decline 365,000 and the unemployment rate to stand at 9.6%. Fortunately the payrolls figure gained most of the attention along with falling oil prices and we recovered about 1/2 of a discount point Thursday morning. Oil was under $67/barrel Thursday morning, which helped alleviate inflation fears. The bond market was closed Friday for the holiday. For the week interest rates were near unchanged. The additional debt supplied tied to the US Treasury auctions will be the most important data this w...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
Market CommentMortgage bond prices fell last week applying upward pressure on mortgage interest rates. Trading remained extremely volatile with daily swings of 3/8's in discount points a common occurrence. The economic data released was mixed with no clear indication of the direction of the US economy. The Federal Reserve met last week and the governing body indicated the pace of economic deterioration is slowing. For the week, interest rates rose by about 5/8's in discount points. The employment report to be released Friday will be the most significant data this week. Productivity data will be important also. Additional debt supply hits the market this week with the Fed auctioning $71 billion of 3, 10, and 30 year Treasuries. It will be interesting to see if the market can continue to ...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
Market CommentMortgage bond prices remained near unchanged holding mortgage interest rates relatively steady for the week. There was very little data the first portion of the week and rates improved slightly as the DOW was down 183 points at one point Monday morning. Unfortunately the durable goods orders and new home sales data were not as weak as expected which helped stocks rally at the expense of bonds the latter portion of the week. For the week, interest rates on government and conventional loans were unchanged. The Treasury auctions will factor heavily in trading this week. It will be interesting to see how the additional debt supply is absorbed. The gross domestic product and employment cost index data will be the most important releases. No surprises are expected from the Fed b...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices rose last week helping mortgage interest rates improve. The mixed economic data released during the week provided no clear indication to the direction of the US economy. One bright spot was the consumer and producer price index data, which showed no signs of rising inflation. Inflation erodes the value of money received in the future, therefore, when inflation is on the rise so are interest rates to compensate for the reduced purchasing power. For the week, interest rates on government and conventional loans fell by about 1/8th of a discount point. The leading economic indicators release Monday will set the tone for trading this week. Durable goods orders data will be the most important data release. LOOKING AHEAD EconomicIndicator ReleaseDate and Tim...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices fell last week applying upward pressure on mortgage interest rates. The bond market continued to come under pressure from significantly stronger stocks. The DOW shot towards the 8,000 mark despite data releases that showed continued economic weakness. Most worrisome were the many reports that indicated people continue to lose jobs. Consumers find it difficult to spend without a job or with the fear their job may be in peril. The weaker than expected consumer sentiment data provided evidence of that fear. For the week, interest rates on government and conventional loans rose by about 3/8's of a discount point. The bond market closes early Thursday in advance of the market holiday Friday. The shortened trading week may result in mortgage interest rate v...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices fell last week applying upward pressure on mortgage interest rates. The bond market got a shock from a surprise increase in new home sales, stronger than expected durable goods orders, and some stock strength. There were also concerns about the US dollar in general and dollar denominated securities as China expressed interest in substituting the yuan to dollar peg in exchange for a new international currency. Fortunately the Fed continued to come to the rescue buying mortgage backed securities in an effort to keep interest rates relatively steady and low. For the week, interest rates on government and conventional loans rose by about 1/8 to 1/4 of a discount point. The employment report Friday will be the most important economic release this week. LOO...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
   MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices rose last week applying downward pressure on mortgage interest rates. The bond market got a boost from the Fed announcement (read below) to buy more mortgage debt. There was some profit taking in bonds Thursday afternoon following the run-up in prices Wednesday. Higher than expected core readings of the consumer and producer price indices reignited some inflation concerns. The Fed's continued efforts to pump money into mortgage bonds helped keep mortgage interest rates favorable. For the week, interest rates on government and conventional loans fell by about 1/2 of a discount point. The Treasury auctions will once again take center stage this week as additional debt supply hits the market. Durable goods orders and consumer sentiment data will be im...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices rose last week applying downward pressure on mortgage interest rates. The bond market as a whole absorbed the additional debt supply the Treasury issued. There were some surprises with the retail sales figure not being as weak as expected and significant stock strength. However, the Fed's continued efforts to pump money into mortgage bonds helped keep mortgage interest rates favorable. For the week, interest rates on government and conventional loans fell by about 1/4 of a discount point. The Fed meeting Wednesday will take center stage. While the Fed is expected to leave rates unchanged their post meeting remarks will be carefully analyzed. The producer price index and consumer price index releases will be the most important data this week. LOOKING A...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices rose last week applying downward pressure on mortgage interest rates. Rates found support from falling stock prices. The Dow Jones index fell into the 6,000 range early in the week and was unable to recover. The employment report released last Friday indicated continued weakness in the labor market with the US economy losing 651,000 jobs in February. For the week, interest rates on government and conventional loans fell by about 5/8's of a discount point.  The Treasury auctions will take center stage this week as debt supply concerns continue. Most of the other releases are expected to be weaker and, any surprises to the contrary, will likely result in mortgage interest rate volatility. LOOKING AHEAD EconomicIndicator ReleaseDate and Time ConsensusEst...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
Five Questions to Ask Yourself for the Biggest Tax Refund   (ARA) - Tax refunds have risen an average of $200 for people who have filed their 2008 tax returns early, the Internal Revenue Service reports. Part of the reason for the increase - the IRS has made several changes aimed at helping taxpayers save money this year. Ask yourself five simple questions to see if you're affected by these changes that could result in more deductions and a larger refund: Did you experience any major life changes in 2008? Job change, marriage, divorce, childbirth, adoption, relocation, bankruptcy and other life changes can result in major deductions. Taxpayers who didn't receive any or all of the Recovery Rebate last year, and experienced a life change that dramatically affected their financial situatio...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices fell last week pushing mortgage interest rates higher. A Freddie Mac report of increased defaults sent bond prices crashing and interest rates higher mid-week. The Treasury auctions generally showed mediocre foreign demand and the overall additional debt supply also pressured mortgage bond prices lower. Most of the data continued to show economic weakness but there was a slight up tick in the consumer sentiment number that was not bond-friendly. For the week, interest rates on government and conventional loans rose by about 1/2 to 5/8 of a discount point.  The employment report Friday will be the most important data this week. Analysts are expecting the worst from most of the data. Any surprises in the data showing the beginning of economic recovery w...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices rose last week applying slight downward pressure on mortgage interest rates. Weakness in the equity markets helped bonds recover from losses seen earlier in the week. On Thursday the Dow Jones index closed at October 2002 levels. The Federal Reserve continued buying mortgage bonds with the purchase of about $20 billion from February 12 through February 18. For the week, interest rates on government and conventional fell by about 1/4 of a discount point. Consumer confidence data will set the tone for mortgage interest rates this week. The foreign demand for debt will once again play a dominant role in trading with another round of Treasury auctions. The Treasury is set to auction 97B in two, five and seven-year notes starting Tuesday. LOOKING AHEAD Eco...
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices fell last week pushing interest rates slightly higher. Governments across the globe continued to battle the credit crisis and economic instability. Billions of dollars of debt offerings by the US Treasury continued to be announced. Unfortunately, the additional supply caused bond prices in general to fall and rates to rise the middle of the week. Record weekly jobless claims, weak factory orders, and strong productivity data released Thursday provided much-needed boost for mortgage bonds. For the week, interest rates on government and conventional loans rose by about 1/8 of a discount point. The retail sales data Thursday will be the most important event this week. The Treasury will auction 3-year, 10-year and 30-year notes and bonds starting Tuesday....
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By Mick Rothblott
(Mortgages By Mick)
Mortgage Market 2/2/2009 MARKET COMMENT Mortgage bond prices fell last week pushing rates considerably higher. The data the first portion of the week came in as a surprise with existing home sales and Leading Economic Indicators both stronger than expected. The majority of the other data pointed toward continued economic weakness. New home sales fell a record 14.7%. The Fed left rates unchanged as expected but bonds fell sharply following the announcement. Uncertainty dominated trading. The Fed bought $16.8 billion of mortgage bonds between January 22nd and the 28th but the purchases did little to help rates improve. For the week, interest rates on government and conventional loans rose by about 7/8 of a discount point. The employment report Friday will be the most important event this ...
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