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1st July, 25
Mortgage Rates Hold Steady at 3 Month Lows
It's been 88 days since the average 30yr fixed mortgage rate was as low as it is today--close enough to 3 months. Some lenders may be higher or lower than they were yesterday depending on whether or not changed rates yesterday afternoon. Mortgage lenders prefer to set rates once per day, but can "reprice" if the underlying bond market moves enough in one direction or the other. Bonds improved enough yesterday afternoon for many lenders to offer slightly lower rates. Those lenders are a hair higher today, generally. In terms of the underlying bond market, things are just
Mortgage Rates Hold Steady at 3 Month Lows
It's been 88 days since the average 30yr fixed mortgage rate was as low as it is today--close enough to 3 months. Some lenders may be higher or lower than they were yesterday depending on whether or not changed rates yesterday afternoon. Mortgage lenders prefer to set rates once per day, but can "reprice" if the underlying bond market moves enough in one direction or the other. Bonds improved enough yesterday afternoon for many lenders to offer slightly lower rates. Those lenders are a hair higher today, generally. In terms of the underlying bond market, things are just
1st July, 25
FICO Simulation, Georgia Servicing, Recapture Tools; What LOs Should Be Doing Now; Deficits and the New Tax Bill
“Life is like a roll of toilet paper: The closer you get to the end, the faster it goes.” Just like that, 2025 is half over. With it have come changes at the GSEs, government loan programs, and the compliance landscape. In his latest edition of Mortgage Musings, Attorney Brian Levy offers insights on the trigger lead bill(s) and the challenges faced by DC trade association lobbyists in the current environment. (Sign up here for a free subscription to Levy’s Mortgage Musings.) Certainly there have been changes in the servicing landscape, and STRATMOR’s Advisory Angle today at 11AM PT is
FICO Simulation, Georgia Servicing, Recapture Tools; What LOs Should Be Doing Now; Deficits and the New Tax Bill
“Life is like a roll of toilet paper: The closer you get to the end, the faster it goes.” Just like that, 2025 is half over. With it have come changes at the GSEs, government loan programs, and the compliance landscape. In his latest edition of Mortgage Musings, Attorney Brian Levy offers insights on the trigger lead bill(s) and the challenges faced by DC trade association lobbyists in the current environment. (Sign up here for a free subscription to Levy’s Mortgage Musings.) Certainly there have been changes in the servicing landscape, and STRATMOR’s Advisory Angle today at 11AM PT is
1st July, 25
AM Data Possibly Arguing For a Bounce
Tuesday brings the week's first decent dose of meaningful economic data with both S&P/ISM Manufacturing PMIs and Job Openings. The PMI data was somewhat more debatable with headline levels slightly stronger than expected, but some internal components remaining bond-friendly. Job openings data was less equivocal, suggesting a marked bounce versus last month's lower levels (and the previous month's cycle lows). In other words, job openings now look more like they're leveling off after falling rapidly from 2022 through late 2024 or early 2025, depending on how one chooses to
AM Data Possibly Arguing For a Bounce
Tuesday brings the week's first decent dose of meaningful economic data with both S&P/ISM Manufacturing PMIs and Job Openings. The PMI data was somewhat more debatable with headline levels slightly stronger than expected, but some internal components remaining bond-friendly. Job openings data was less equivocal, suggesting a marked bounce versus last month's lower levels (and the previous month's cycle lows). In other words, job openings now look more like they're leveling off after falling rapidly from 2022 through late 2024 or early 2025, depending on how one chooses to
30th June, 25
Steady Gains in the PM Hours
Steady Gains in the PM Hours It's common to see the effects of month/quarter-end trading most prominently in the PM hours and today's quarter-end session was no exception. A glut of bond buying just after 12:30pm got the part started and yields bottomed out just before the 4pm NYSE close. While 4pm is a time that's associated with stocks, it has come to be the larger of the two closing bells for the bond market on month/quarter-end days for a variety of reasons (de-emphasis of CME pit over the years, increased prevalence of ETF trading, large portfolio rebalancing that involves both
Steady Gains in the PM Hours
Steady Gains in the PM Hours It's common to see the effects of month/quarter-end trading most prominently in the PM hours and today's quarter-end session was no exception. A glut of bond buying just after 12:30pm got the part started and yields bottomed out just before the 4pm NYSE close. While 4pm is a time that's associated with stocks, it has come to be the larger of the two closing bells for the bond market on month/quarter-end days for a variety of reasons (de-emphasis of CME pit over the years, increased prevalence of ETF trading, large portfolio rebalancing that involves both
30th June, 25
Mortgage Rates Take Another Step Toward April Lows
April 3rd and 4th saw the average top tier 30yr fixed mortgage rates well into the "mid 6's." Many lenders were able to quote 6.5% at the time. Just a few days ago, we noted there was still a ways to go before breaking below those early April levels, but the past few days have taken us within striking distance. The average lender is now only 0.07% higher than they were on April 4th and that's a gap that can be traversed in as little as one day under the right circumstances. If it is destined to be traversed in the near feature, it would likely be due to exceptional weakness
Mortgage Rates Take Another Step Toward April Lows
April 3rd and 4th saw the average top tier 30yr fixed mortgage rates well into the "mid 6's." Many lenders were able to quote 6.5% at the time. Just a few days ago, we noted there was still a ways to go before breaking below those early April levels, but the past few days have taken us within striking distance. The average lender is now only 0.07% higher than they were on April 4th and that's a gap that can be traversed in as little as one day under the right circumstances. If it is destined to be traversed in the near feature, it would likely be due to exceptional weakness
30th June, 25
Automation, HELOC Products; The Current State of Regulation and Compliance; Interest Rates Sagging
“The seminar ‘How to avoid frauds’ is canceled. Tickets are non-refundable.” Mortgage fraud is alive and well in the United States. In Utah, Kouri Richins, 35, the Kamas mother who is accused of killing her husband and writing a children’s book about grief is facing 26 new felony charges, including five counts of mortgage fraud. It certainly is not confined to the U.S.: In Canada (remember Canada, whose citizens used to visit the U.S.?), a tragic tale unfolded with lost money and death. In lighter legal and regulatory news, the recent MBA Hawai’i annual conference attracts well-
Automation, HELOC Products; The Current State of Regulation and Compliance; Interest Rates Sagging
“The seminar ‘How to avoid frauds’ is canceled. Tickets are non-refundable.” Mortgage fraud is alive and well in the United States. In Utah, Kouri Richins, 35, the Kamas mother who is accused of killing her husband and writing a children’s book about grief is facing 26 new felony charges, including five counts of mortgage fraud. It certainly is not confined to the U.S.: In Canada (remember Canada, whose citizens used to visit the U.S.?), a tragic tale unfolded with lost money and death. In lighter legal and regulatory news, the recent MBA Hawai’i annual conference attracts well-
30th June, 25
Slow, Sideways Start, But Month-End Volatility Always a Possibility
Month/quarter end trading is a somewhat esoteric and potentially frustrating concept for the typical market watcher because it seemingly violates the notion that market move for logical underlying reasons. To be fair, month-end volatility also has logical underlying reasons, but the logic requires a fairly deep dive (which is why we have a primer on the topic). Today's only econ data is/was Chicago PMI which has already come and gone with no fanfare. Trading levels are best described as sideways from Friday and the intraday range, far narrower. If month-end volatility picks
Slow, Sideways Start, But Month-End Volatility Always a Possibility
Month/quarter end trading is a somewhat esoteric and potentially frustrating concept for the typical market watcher because it seemingly violates the notion that market move for logical underlying reasons. To be fair, month-end volatility also has logical underlying reasons, but the logic requires a fairly deep dive (which is why we have a primer on the topic). Today's only econ data is/was Chicago PMI which has already come and gone with no fanfare. Trading levels are best described as sideways from Friday and the intraday range, far narrower. If month-end volatility picks
27th June, 25
Modest Friday Bounce Does Little to Alter Bigger Picture
Modest Friday Bounce Does Little to Alter Bigger Picture After a decent mid-day recover, bonds gave up their gains heading into the 3pm close. It's a level of weakness that demands no explanation in the bigger picture--especially on a Friday afternoon of a week with a rally on every single previous day. Nonetheless, one could make a case for the bump by pointing to things like Senate moving closer to a spending bill vote with reports suggesting slightly more spending than before. Separate headlines involved Trump declaring an end to trade negotiations with Canada--
Modest Friday Bounce Does Little to Alter Bigger Picture
Modest Friday Bounce Does Little to Alter Bigger Picture After a decent mid-day recover, bonds gave up their gains heading into the 3pm close. It's a level of weakness that demands no explanation in the bigger picture--especially on a Friday afternoon of a week with a rally on every single previous day. Nonetheless, one could make a case for the bump by pointing to things like Senate moving closer to a spending bill vote with reports suggesting slightly more spending than before. Separate headlines involved Trump declaring an end to trade negotiations with Canada--
27th June, 25
Mortgage Rates Not Too Far From 8 Month Lows
Friday's mortgage rates ended up being right in line with Thursday's on average. At 6.72%, the MND daily rate index is as low as it's been since early April when it hit 6.60%. If you're thinking that 6.72 doesn't sound much higher than 6.60, you're right! Mortgage lenders tend to offer rates in 0.125% increments, so we're really only one notch away from those lows. After that, we'd need to go all the way back to October to see anything lower. While the mortgage market can languish sideways for weeks without moving outside a 0.12 range, there are also more than a few examples
Mortgage Rates Not Too Far From 8 Month Lows
Friday's mortgage rates ended up being right in line with Thursday's on average. At 6.72%, the MND daily rate index is as low as it's been since early April when it hit 6.60%. If you're thinking that 6.72 doesn't sound much higher than 6.60, you're right! Mortgage lenders tend to offer rates in 0.125% increments, so we're really only one notch away from those lows. After that, we'd need to go all the way back to October to see anything lower. While the mortgage market can languish sideways for weeks without moving outside a 0.12 range, there are also more than a few examples
27th June, 25
HELOC, Ops Tools; STRATMOR and Servicing; The Importance of Marketing; Freddie Fannie News
Does anyone pay with cash anymore, or actually have the money in their bank account? Credit card debt is now $1.1 trillion. There is even a credit card just for automotive repairs! With those “Buy Now Pay Later” arrangements being added to the FICO reports, MLOs are asking, “What are delinquencies like? Will these add to, or subtract from, my pool of eligible borrowers? To the surprise of no veteran LO, it turns out that nearly half have experienced payment problems. Want to do a client with a high credit card balance (and paying 28 percent on it) a favor? Of course you want to put them
HELOC, Ops Tools; STRATMOR and Servicing; The Importance of Marketing; Freddie Fannie News
Does anyone pay with cash anymore, or actually have the money in their bank account? Credit card debt is now $1.1 trillion. There is even a credit card just for automotive repairs! With those “Buy Now Pay Later” arrangements being added to the FICO reports, MLOs are asking, “What are delinquencies like? Will these add to, or subtract from, my pool of eligible borrowers? To the surprise of no veteran LO, it turns out that nearly half have experienced payment problems. Want to do a client with a high credit card balance (and paying 28 percent on it) a favor? Of course you want to put them
