January 2023: The Year Ahead
The Federal Reserve's decision to increase the Federal Funds Rate from nearly 0% at the start of 2022 to 4.5% in December 2022 was made to combat inflation. However, this increase in the Fed Funds Rate resulted in long-term mortgage rates more than doubling, rising...
Mortgage Demand Increases 28% in Single Week
Mortgage rates are at their lowest point since September, and it's bringing new demand into the market. According to the Mortgage Bankers Association's seasonally adjusted index, mortgage application volume jumped nearly 28% last week compared to the previous week....
New Year, New Home: Mortgage Rates DOWN, seller concessions UP
The start of the new year has brought with it a surge in mortgage demand, as lower mortgage rates (I would say "lower," I wouldn't say "low"...) continue to entice homebuyers back into the market. We have seen an increase in inquiries and activity, with many formerly...
Wells Fargo Continues Mortgage Retreat
It's a changing of the guard in the mortgage market. Wells Fargo, once the dominant player in the market, continues retreating from the space. Wells Fargo wholesale stopped existing years ago, yesterday it was announced that they were shutting down correspondent...
2023: What California Home Buyers and Home Sellers Need to Think About
The pandemic has caused a lot of changes in the housing market, and over the past few years we've seen sub-three percent mortgage rates, fast-paced bidding wars, and record-low inventory. However, more recently we've seen a correction in the market, with higher...
Wells Fargo fined for Wells Fargo-ing. Again.
On Tuesday, federal regulators fined Wells Fargo $1.7 billion for "widespread mismanagement" over multiple years that harmed over 16 million consumer accounts. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) described the bank's "illegal activity" as including...
Mortgage Rates Fall for 5th Week in a Row
Hot on the heels of the Fed announcing another interest rate increase, data has come in showing that mortgage rates have decreased for the fifth week in a row. This is a timely reminder that the Fed does not set mortgage rates, individual banks and lenders do, and...
Fed's Latest Rate Increase: What You Need to Know
The Federal Reserve took a historic step Wednesday, raising its benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points, putting the key benchmark federal funds rate at a range of 4.25% to 4.5%. This marks the fourth rate increase this year and the ninth since 2015. With this...
Have we turned the corner on inflation? Mortgage rates down.
Recent economic data shows that food inflation is rising at a faster rate than overall inflation, with grocery prices rising by 12%, menu prices increasing by 8.5%, and eggs becoming 49.1% more expensive through November. Inflation cooled more than expected in...
Housing market shows signs of stabilization amid lower rates
The housing market has been showing signs of stabilization in recent weeks, thanks in part to lower mortgage rates. Purchase application data for the last week of November showed a 3% decline week-over-week, but the year-over-year decline of 40% is the smallest since...
