Forecast for the Week 
This week brings news on manufacturing and housing, and possibly inflation.
- Manufacturing data from the Empire State Index and the Philadelphia Fed Index will be released Tuesday and Thursday, respectively, as they are not government reports.
- Unless the government reopens, the Consumer Price Index will not be reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, though it is scheduled for Wednesday.
- Housing data begins Wednesday with the National Association of Home Builders Housing Market Index. This will be followed by Housing Starts and Building Permits Thursday. Investors will be looking to see if higher rates have impacted improvements in the sector.
- As usual, Weekly Initial Jobless Claims will be reported on Thursday. This comes after claims spiked last week due to computer glitches and fallout from the shutdown.
Remember: Weak economic news normally causes money to flow out of Stocks and into Bonds, helping Bonds and home loan rates improve, while strong economic news normally has the opposite result. The chart below shows Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS), which are the type of Bond that home loan rates are based on.
When you see these Bond prices moving higher, it means home loan rates are improving — and when they are moving lower, home loan rates are getting worse.
To go one step further — a red “candle” means that MBS worsened during the day, while a green “candle” means MBS improved during the day. Depending on how dramatic the changes were on any given day, this can cause rate changes throughout the day, as well as on the rate sheets we start with each morning.
As you can see in the chart below, Bonds were able to regain some losses late last week as the Fed’s Bond purchase program continues to support the markets. Home loan rates remain attractive and I’ll be monitoring them closely
Chart: Fannie Mae 4.0% Mortgage Bond (Friday October 11, 2013)
The Mortgage Market Guide View…
Do You Make These Mistakes On Twitter?
It only takes a moment to win (or lose) a customer–and it’s little different with your Twitter followers. Avoid these common mistakes in your tweets and watch your list explode… in a good way!
Grammar got run over by a reindeer. Proper word usage, spelling, and punctuation all matter on social media. Brush up easily with this classic reference.
You never get a second chance to make a first impression. Don’t use the default photo or background. Personalize your profile in ways that highlight your professionalism.
Hashtags are useful for tracking and participating in conversations. But before you use them, make sure the hashtags are being used in a manner consistent with your brand and message. Also, don’t use too many in a single post, or make them too long because #theyarebothtoodifficulttocomprehend.
Limit your tweets to 140 characters. If you need to say something that takes up more space than that, blog it and tweet the link. Don’t use contiguous tweets.
Too direct, perhaps? Sending direct messages to followers to say thank you or pitch anything at all (yes, even free stuff like your website or blog) is bad form.
Binge posting. Too many tweets, or more commonly, too many self-promotional tweets will shrink your list quickly. Rule of thumb: 90% content, 10% promotion.
Edit tweets from sites that provide already written copy. Give them your own style or spin before you post.
Stay away from online debates. Agree to disagree, then move on. Winning a fight on Twitter isn’t worth the high likelihood of risk to your brand.
Retweet this. The best way to get a retweet is to ask–not beg. Adding a simple “RT” to the end of a tweet gets an average 73 retweets per tweet, currently the most effective way.
Success on Twitter requires brevity along with useful or highly interesting information. Remember that and you’re already well on your way to Twitter greatness–and more potential business!
Feel free to pass these tips along to your team, clients, and colleagues so they can learn to use Twitter more effectively.
Economic Calendar for the Week of October 14 – October 18
|
Date
|
ET
|
Economic Report
|
For
|
Estimate
|
Actual
|
Prior
|
Impact
|
| Tue. October 15 |
08:30
|
Empire State Index |
Oct
|
NA
|
6.3
|
HIGH
|
|
| Wed. October 16 |
08:30
|
Consumer Price Index (CPI) |
Sept
|
NA
|
0.1%
|
HIGH
|
|
| Wed. October 16 |
08:30
|
Core Consumer Price Index (CPI) |
Sept
|
NA
|
0.1%
|
HIGH
|
|
| Wed. October 16 |
10:00
|
Housing Market Index |
Oct
|
NA
|
58
|
Moderate
|
|
| Wed. October 16 |
02:00
|
Beige Book |
Oct
|
NA
|
NA
|
Moderate
|
|
| Thu. October 17 |
08:30
|
Jobless Claims (Initial) |
10/12
|
NA
|
374K
|
Moderate
|
|
| Thu. October 17 |
08:30
|
Housing Starts |
Sept
|
NA
|
891K
|
Moderate
|
|
| Thu. October 17 |
08:30
|
Building Permits |
Sept
|
NA
|
918K
|
Moderate
|
|
| Thu. October 17 |
10:00
|
Philadelphia Fed Index |
Oct
|
NA
|
22.3
|
HIGH
|
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