Forecast for the Week 
- In housing news, Existing Home Sales will be released on Wednesday followed by New Home Sales on Friday.
- Thursday brings the usual weekly Initial Jobless Claims.
- The Consumer Sentiment Index will be shared on Friday.
Remember: Weak economic news normally causes money to flow out of Stocks and into Bonds, helping Bonds and home loan rates improve. In contrast, strong economic news normally has the opposite result. The chart below shows Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS), which are the type of Bond on which home loan rates are based.
When you see these Bond prices moving higher, it means home loan rates are improving. When Bond prices 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 are 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, Mortgage Bonds have rebounded in recent days. Despite recent volatility, home loan rates are still in attractive territory.
Chart: Fannie Mae 3.5% Mortgage Bond (Friday, February 17, 2017)
The Mortgage Market Guide View…
2017 Mileage Rates From IRS
If you drive a car, truck or van for work, you’ll want to know the standard mileage rates the IRS has set for 2017. These rates are used to calculate deductible costs for driving an automobile for business, medical and moving purposes as well as driving for charitable purposes.
As of January 1, 2017, the standard mileage rates are calculated at:
- 53.5 cents per mile for business miles driven (down from 54 cents in 2016)
- 17 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes (down from 19 cents in 2016)
- 14 cents per mile driven in service to charitable organizations (set by statute and unchanged from 2016)
Please feel free to pass this important information along to your team, clients and colleagues.
Source: IRS
Economic Calendar for the Week of February 20 – February 24
|
Date
|
ET
|
Economic Report
|
For
|
Estimate
|
Actual
|
Prior
|
Impact
|
| Wed. February 22 |
10:00
|
Existing Home Sales |
Jan
|
NA
|
5.49M
|
Moderate
|
|
| Thu. February 23 |
08:30
|
Jobless Claims (Initial) |
2/18
|
NA
|
239K
|
Moderate
|
|
| Fri. February 24 |
10:00
|
Consumer Sentiment Index (UoM) |
Feb
|
NA
|
95.7
|
Moderate
|
|
| Fri. February 24 |
10:00
|
New Home Sales |
Jan
|
NA
|
536K
|
Moderate
|
The material contained in this newsletter is provided by a third party to real estate, financial services and other professionals only for their use and the use of their clients. The material provided is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as investment and/or mortgage advice. Although the material is deemed to be accurate and reliable, we do not make any representations as to its accuracy or completeness and as a result, there is no guarantee it is without errors.
Mortgage Market Guide, LLC is the copyright owner or licensee of the content and/or information in this email, unless otherwise indicated. Mortgage Market Guide, LLC does not grant to you a license to any content, features or materials in this email. You may not distribute, download, or save a copy of any of the content or screens except as otherwise provided in our Terms and Conditions of Membership, for any purpose. The material contained in this newsletter is provided by a third party to real estate, financial services and other professionals only for their use and the use of their clients. The material provided is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as investment and/or mortgage advice. Although the material is deemed to be accurate and reliable, we do not make any representations as to its accuracy or completeness and as a result, there is no guarantee it is without errors.
Mortgage Info By Michelle Wickett 