The Federal Reserve came out yesterday afternoon with a fresh statement and a few adjustments to they current monetary policy program. Financial market participants anticipated some, but not all, of what was said. The effect on rates wasn’t substantial, which means right now is still a great time to buy or refinance. Read on for more details.
FOMC Update 9.20.17 from Total Mortgage on Vimeo.
Where are mortgage rates going?
Fed puts balance sheet reduction in motion
The Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee concluded their sixth meeting of the year yesterday afternoon with an important announcement.
Click here to get today’s latest mortgage rates (Sep. 21, 2017).
In a historic move, the FOMC stated that they will begin to reverse their quantitative easing program in October by reducing their $4.5 trillion balance sheet by $10 billion a month. It’s a significant milestone, coming nearly nine years after the program was started.
Financial market participants widely anticipated the decision and therefore its effect on the market were somewhat muted. What investors did not see coming, was the fact that twelve out of the sixteen FOMC members still expect another quarter point rate increase in 2017.
Prior to this news breaking, the CME Group’s Fed Funds futures had the chance of a December rates hike at about 42%. Once the news broke, investors scrambled to adjust their positions, sending the odds up to around 70%. Despite the drastic swing, though, the bond market remained fairly stable, with Treasury yields only rising by a few basis points.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note (the best market indicator of where mortgage rates are going) moved up three basis points. Mortgage rates typically move in the same direction as the 10-year yield, so rates dealt with some mild upward pressure. Today, the 10-year yield is down about two basis points, bringing it close to where it was yesterday morning.
[contentbox id=”8″]
What does this mean for me?
Great time to buy or refinance
Mortgage rates are still at extremely accommodating levels for 2017. If you’ve been considering buying a new home or refinancing your current mortgage, you’re not going to get a much better rate environment anytime soon than the one right now. The best way to see if it makes sense for you is to crunch the numbers.
To get the most accurate idea of what kind of rate we could offer, you should fill out our short form and get a personalized rate quote. Or, if you’d rather talk to someone, you can always call one of our experienced mortgage specialists.
They can walk you through the same process, clarifying any questions you may have, and let you know what your custom rate quote is.
Today’s economic data:
Jobless Claims
Applications filed for U.S. unemployment benefits for the week of 9/16/17 came in at 259,000. That’s well below both the prior reading of 282,000 and the consensus for 303,000. Analysts are saying, however, that the dip could just be due to the inability of workers displaced by the hurricanes to file claims.
Philly Fed Business Outlook Survey
The Philly Fed’s general business conditions index came in at a very strong 23.8 for September. That’s nearly five points up from the previous reading.
FHFA House Price Index
The FHFA house price index ticked up 0.2% in July. That puts the yearly change at 6.3%.
Notable events this week:
Monday:
- Housing Market Index
Tuesday:
- FOMC Meeting Begins
- Housing Starts
- Import and Export Prices
- President Trump Speaks to the United Nations
Wednesday:
- Existing Home Sales
- EIA Petroleum Status Report
- FOMC Meeting Announcement
Thursday:
- Jobless Claims
- Philly Fed Business Outlook Survey
- FHFA House Price Index
Friday:
- Fedspeak
- PMI Composite Flash
from Total Mortgage Underwritings Blog http://ift.tt/2wChxaC
No comments:
Post a Comment