The Current Mortgage Market
Continue to float and not lock into rates, but be aware that if a cliff deal is struck before January 1, you could see Bond prices fall and rates rise in the short term. The Dow suffered its worst loss since mid-November with little progress to avert falling off the cliff next week. The fall did help to buoy Bond prices but the gains were minimal as Bond holders feel that if an 11th hour deal is made, riskier assets may be back in play.
The 3% coupon rose by 9bp to end at 104.84, up modestly for the week. The Dow fell by 158.20 points to 12,938.11, the Nasdaq lost 25.59 points to 2,960.31 while the S&P dropped 15.67 points 1,402.43. Oil was last seen at $90.67/barrel near unchanged. Next week features the Nonfarm payrolls report where it is expected that 150K new jobs were created in December.
Big Banks Still Don’t Get it
A study by the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) between July 21, 2011 and September 30, 2012, U.S. consumers filed 36,403 mortgage-related complaints against various lenders, banks, servicers, and other mortgage companies. Bank of America accounted for 27% of complaints, the most out of any bank accounted for in CFPB’s data – of the 9,930 mortgage complaints filed against Bank of America, 6,430 related to loan modifications, collections and foreclosures. Loan servicing, payments and escrow accounts recorded 2,044 complaints, while complaints regarding application, originator or mortgage broker issues tallied 542. BofA received nearly twice as many complaints as runner up Wells Fargo who recorded 5,051 mortgage-related complaints in the CFPB study’s time frame.
30 Year Fixed Rate Mortgage Finishes Year Near Record Lows
The 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage hovered at 3.35% for the week ending Dec. 27, down from 3.37% a week earlier and 3.95% last year, according to Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey.
What Will Happen To Mortgage Rates in 2013? The Washington Times (Henry Savage)
Low mortgage rates are one of the silver linings of the housing crisis. Many families can now afford homes with interest rates so low. So heading into 2013, analysts are beginning to ask themselves whether rates in 2013 will finally rise.
Housing News
New Survey Predicts 2013 Home Prices To Rise 3.1%
A new survey of 105 economists and real estate industry experts is forecasting home prices to rise 3.1% in 2013.
The survey – which was conducted by Pulsenomics LLC between Nov. 30 and Dec. 12 and published by Zillow Inc. – finds increasing optimism on the near-term future of housing. The survey respondents said they expect home prices to increase in full-year 2012 by 4.6%, up from their more modest forecast of 2.3% in a previous survey released in September. Respondents also indicated they expect home prices to rise 3.1% in 2013, up from an expectation of 2.4% in September, and by more than 3% annually through 2017.
“An organic recovery in the housing market really took hold in the latter half of 2012, and this improvement is echoed in some of the most optimistic price projections we’ve seen in years from this group,” says Zillow Chief Economist Stan Humphries. “Record levels of affordability and an improving overall economic picture have really helped buoy the market and have us well-positioned for continued growth, albeit slightly slower, in 2013 and beyond.”
Sources: MMG, Bllomberg, CNBC,HousingWire, Mortgageorb