Today's New Comment

For the first time in more than four years, the Federal Reserve cut its Fed Funds Rate, which directly impacts millions of American borrowers. And while this important decision has many implications, there’s still some debate among experts about what this means to the economy as a whole.

The Federal Reserve meets again in six weeks, and no one is certain how market volatility and inflation concerns will affect their future policy and decision-making. Bottom line: Take advantage of this opportunity while you still can. Call me right away.

• If you’re looking to capture a lower interest rate for refinancing or buying a home, this could be your best opportunity to do so.
• If you have an Adjustable Rate Mortgage, while this rate cut might help to improve your situation, now is the time to refinance into a fixed-rate loan.
• If you have a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) or credit cards tied to the Prime Rate, the Fed’s cut in the Fed Funds Rate just put a little money in your pocket.

Borrowers waiting for a lower fixed-rate mortgage may be waiting for a long time. The chart below clearly shows how Fed Funds Rate cuts do not translate into cuts in fixed-rate mortgages. In January 2001, the Fed Funds Rate was at 6% and 30-year fixed rates averaged 7.03%. By December 2001, following 4.25% in cuts throughout the year, home loan rates were actually up to 7.07%.

Yes, we may experience some temporary improvements in rates in the coming weeks, but the markets will remain volatile as long as inflation and recession are a possible threat to the Federal Reserve's long-term economic policies.

As always, feel free to call or email with any quesitons.

Scott Batt

573-268-4698

Tuesday's bond market has opened in positive territory following a much weaker than expected consumer confidence reading. The stock markets are posting moderate gains again with the Dow up 17 points and the Nasdaq up 5 points. The bond market is currently up 8/32, which will likely improve this morning's mortgage rates by approximately .125 of a discount point.

The Conference Board posted their Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) for September late this morning, showing a reading of 99.8. This was much lower than the 104.5 that was expected and was the lowest reading since November 2005. That indicates that consumers were far less confident in their own financial situations than many had thought. This is good news for the bond market and mortgage rates because waning confidence usually translates into weaker levels of consumer spending.

The National Association of Realtors reported that home resales fell 4.3% last month, which was close to forecasts. This was the sixth consecutive monthly drop in sales, indicating that that the housing sector continues to weaken. However, this data is not considered to be highly important to mortgage bonds, therefore, its results have failed to influence rates this morning.

August's Durable Goods Orders will be posted early tomorrow morning. This report gives us an indication of manufacturing sector strength by tracking orders for big-ticket items at U.S. factories. Current forecasts call for a drop in orders in the neighborhood of 3.5%. A larger decline could help bond prices and cause mortgage rates to drop tomorrow. However, a smaller than expected decrease would indicate a stronger than expected manufacturing sector that would likely help push mortgage rates higher Wednesday.

Mortgage Commentary 2007

Hello All,

As we were talking yesterday, we found out that all though the Fed Rate Cut did not directly impact rates, the wave caused by this is hurting now. Bonds are currently down 38 basis points and we will more thank likely be seeing another mid day price change for the worst.

I know this topic can be confusing, so let me try to explain what is going on. The Fed's number one concern is containing inflation. This is currently at 2.2%. The target for the fed is 2% inflation per year. What impacts inflation, well we do......every time we buy an kind of goods from any retailer, we are impacting inflation. This drives the stock market and in return takes money out of bonds, resulting in worse rates. The reason the Fed Rate Hike in the first place was to slow buying and contain inflation from going up.

As time passes, we will see that the now 1/2% lower fed funds rate will continue to make an impact in wall street, our everyday lives, and the way investors are treating this, as a now stronger economy. Keep in mind, the stronger the economy, the worse the mortgage rates.

Thanks for Reading......Please feel free to respond or call 573-268-4698.

Just like King Kong clutching the top of the Empire State Building…Bankrate, the "800-pound Gorilla" of online home loan rates is falling under fire. The Bankrate website draws millions of visitors, as it promises to give a listing of companies and their rate and cost offerings for mortgage loans, and even passes that information on to most of America's largest newspapers as fact. It proclaims itself to be a tool for the consumer, just delivering information and advice…but as many reputable mortgage lenders have known all along, it turns out that consumers are finding the reality of Bankrate to be a little different.

A lawsuit is in the works against Bankrate, after hundreds of consumers complained about lenders who failed to deliver the rates and terms they promised on the website. In fact, one lender actually told a Bankrate employee that a consumer would need a "direct pipeline to God" in order to qualify for the rates and terms they advertise on the site. Why would a lender post rates and terms they are unwilling or unable to honor? To lure in consumers who truly want to believe that they are getting an interest rate or cost package that is significantly lower than all the competition. And by the time the consumer finds out they are not getting the package they were promised, they likely have wasted enough valuable time that they feel somewhat stuck to use whatever terms the lender hauls out.

Of course there are real reasons that the terms of a loan package can change mid-stream. When working with a reputable lender, it would generally only be caused by a change from what was submitted on the loan application. Some examples of this include a change in credit, income, employment, debts or assets.

So are there any reputable lenders on Bankrate? Yes, of course. And some of those lenders were the ones who prompted the lawsuit in the first place. As they were posting real interest rates and terms they could actually honor, they could see that consumers would instead be contacting the less-reputable lenders who were posting completely unrealistic rate and cost offers. And the consumer might not find out the difference until it was too late. Mortgage lenders get their money from essentially the same places - so anytime there is a very large difference between quotes on identical programs, it pays to ask some questions.

Bottom line - the internet at large can be a great place to gain basic trends and information about a home loan, but the Bankrate lawsuit illustrates the need to work with a Trusted Advisor. A home loan is generally the largest financial transaction of your entire life - working with a real professional who can advise you on correct strategies and programs for your needs is a must. And like your mom or dad always used to say - you get what you pay for, and solid advice from a real professional may cost more than a bargain basement operation.

Most importantly, remember that the absolute lowest rate and terms on the WRONG financial strategy or loan program for your life will prove to be far more costly than a competitive rate package on the RIGHT strategy, which correctly fits your financial goals and needs.

Good Morning All,

I would like to let everyone know that a rate cut is possible by the Fed today. This will help the short term rates by reducing the Fed Funds Rate, which is a factor for products such as HELOC's, credit cards, and even car loans. If this should happen it will show that the Fed feels inflation has been contained and this could cause rates to go up. The reason for this is investors will hear of the cut and feel that the economy is doing good. Money will then come out of our mortgage backed bonds and in to stocks. On the other hand if the Fed does not cut, we could see some better rates today as money will go back in to bonds from stocks and will bump our bond prices. I will let everyone know the outcome later this afternoon.

I hope that everyone has a great day and please feel free to call me if you should have any questions.

Scott Batt