The last 2 months of 2018 marked a solid run for mortgage rates. December was particularly good, with rates falling at the fastest pace in at least at least 4 years. Balance that against the fact that early November saw the highest rates in more than 7 years!
It’s not uncommon to see rates fall more […]
This week’s biggest housing-related headline was the drop to a 3-year low in Existing Home Sales. This is just the latest in a series of reports that suggests housing has turned some sort of scary corner. But drawing the line between fear and reality can be a matter of perspective.
Has housing data actually weakened in the past year? Undoubtedly! […]
Interest rates have enjoyed several months of prosperity without any major bounce back toward higher levels, but that might be changing as of this week. Could this be the last time we see rates this low for a while?
The answer depends on the definition of ‘a while.’ There’s always some risk that rates will rise for longer than we might […]
It was a long December for the stock market, which had its worst month since the financial crisis (in terms of % change). Meanwhile, interest rates had their best month since June 2016.
The size and direction of those moves caused speculation about a big reversal at the beginning of 2019. In both cases, traders figured stocks and rates had […]
2018 has been an interesting year to say the least. Stocks hit all-time highs and are now in the midst of their worst month on record in terms of outright losses. Rates hit their highest levels in at least 7 years but have fallen fairly quickly heading into the end of the year.
The 11th-hour volatility raises a few big questions about […]
Last week we discussed the possibility of mortgage rates continuing to fall despite the near certainty of this week’s Fed rate hike. That’s exactly what happened, but it was the move in stocks that got the most attention–not a surprising result given the following chart.
While there has been plenty of news coverage of the potential government shutdown and Trump’s potential legal […]
Last week, we discussed a surprising spike in market volatility. Fortunately, one of the volatile moves involved interest rates dropping to their lowest levels since September. This week has been quite different. The volatility is gone. Rates have bounced modestly and consolidated (i.e. moved in a narrower range).
Consolidation is often seen just ahead of some big flashpoint. While […]
Last week’s newsletter asked whether or not the highest interest rates of this economic cycle are behind us. At the time, this was a relatively new and bold assertion. Now, this week makes that assessment look tame by comparison.
Specifically, rates surged triumphantly lower, and at a much quicker pace. From the recent highs, this is now the biggest, fastest […]
