Mortgage & Market Roundup for 7.30.11

Mortgage and Market Review for July 30th 2011

Economic News:  What a week! We are all hearing pretty much non-stop about government spending, taxation & the debt ceiling. There was a lot of other news this week that has had an impact on the market. Consumer Confidence, while weak in the near term, revealed an optimistic outlook for the next six months. New Home Sales continue to struggle but showed pricing strength which was a nice follow through on last week’s existing home sales figures. Pending Home Sales notched a 2.4% gain and the index rose to 90.9 continuting the strong gains shown in the May report. Initial Jobless Claims broke though the 400,000+ barrier, where they had been for the last 14 weeks, at 398,000. Lastly, the GDP results were tepid. The 1st Quarter was revised down to .40% growth versus the 1.9% initially reported. The 2nd Quarter was released at 1.3%. Hopefully those in charge can get things together in the next couple of days and we can once again move on toward economic recovery.

Mortgage Markets:  Treasuries and Mortgage Backed Securities ended the week with strong gains. The 10 Year Note is currently trading at 2.798%.

Next Week’s Reports:  Monday – ISM Manufacturing Index & Construction Spending   Tuesday – Personal Income & Outlays Wednesday – ADP Employment Report & Factory Orders   Thursday – Jobless Claims   Friday – Employment Situation

While I do not originate loans I make it a habit to keep abreast of mortgage & market conditions. If you are thinking of purchasing a home the first step is to meet with a mortgage professional. I will gladly provide several top-notch Bay Area advisers for your review if you are in need of a referral.