March 10, 2016
Mortgage rates dropped a bit on Tuesday, but edged higher on Wednesday ahead of Thursday’s scheduled announcement by the European Central Bank (ECB) which has potential to move rates depending on the contents of that announcement and investor reaction to it.
We’ve seen rates shift up and down in the last week or so (mostly up); industry professionals used phrases on Wednesday like “highest since January” but those professionals are often quick to point out that the movement we’ve seen lately is within a specific range.
That range has been fairly narrow so the moves higher and lower should be viewed in context. There doesn’t seem to be much short term danger of breaking out of that range, but breaking news and things like the European Central Bank announcement have potential to push or start a push higher (or lower) depending on investor reactions.
30-year fixed rate conventional mortgages are still at a best execution 3.75%; the fluctuations of the last two days could be seen in the form of adjusted closing costs rather than an actual change in rates depending on the lender and the borrower’s financial qualifications. FHA mortgage loan rates are still within a range between 3.25% and 3.5%. How long that range will be with us is unknown and FHA rates tend to vary more among participating lenders.
Remember, the best execution rates seen here assume ideal conditions including excellent borrower FICO scores and other financial qualifications. Your experience may vary–these rates are not available from all lenders or to all borrowers.
Advice on locking and floating was not mixed on Wednesday–our sources are advising borrowers within 30 days of closing to take advantage of the rates as they are and avoid the elevated risk of floating ahead of events like the ECB announcement. Some may decide to float anyway, which is the borrower’s choice. Keep in mind that floating is never risk-free, so make the most informed decision you can before deciding to float.
Do you work in residential real estate? You should know about the free tool offered by FHA.com. It is designed especially for real estate websites; a widget that displays FHA loan limits for the counties serviced by those sites. It is simple to spend a few seconds customizing the state, counties, and widget size for the tool; you can copy the code and paste it into your website with ease. Get yours today:
http://www.fha.com/fha_loan_limits_widget
Joe Wallace has been specializing in military and personal finance topics since 1995. His work has appeared on Air Force Television News, The Pentagon Channel, ABC and a variety of print and online publications. He is a 13-year Air Force veteran and a member of the Air Force Public Affairs Alumni Association. He was Managing editor for www.valoans.com for (8) years and is currently the Associate Editor for FHANewsblog.com.
Browse by Date: