Guaranty Mortgage

Mortgage interest rates broke through the gridlock of the last few weeks and, with the exception of one-year adjustable rates, moved lower. Mortgage activity as measured by the volume of loan applications increased by a marginal 0.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from a week earlier and decreased by 0.9 percent unadjusted. Volume was down 31.2 percent compared to the same week in 2007. Read More Now

6 common car-shopping mistakes
Avoiding these six mistakes will keep you out of car-buying trouble, says Bankrate car columnist Terry Jackson.

One spread that I pay attention to is the spread between the 30-year fixed and the 10-year Treasury. That spread has widened considerably.

Wednesday’s Events: German Inflation Data; U.S. Durable Goods, Oil Inventories
German inflation data and comments from ECB’s Lucas Papademos will top the macroeconomic release menu for the European session as U.S. markets prepare for durable goods, weekly oil inventories and a two-year bond auction. Canada’s main releases for the day include some employment data followed by a real return bond auction at noon. Read More Now

Housing starts tumble
Housing starts tumbled in July to their lowest level since Ronald Reagan’s second year in office.

The FDIC’s loan-mod plan
Now that the FDIC controls IndyMac, an institution that used to be one of the country’s biggest mortgage lenders, she has her chance to show other mortgage servicers how it’s done.

Hope for mobile home buyers
This has been a relatively tranquil week for mortgage rates. They haven’t varied much.

Split, splat
The housing market is still in the dumps.

Deducting mortgage interest
Two mortgages can be deducted if they meet the qualifications, says CPA George Saenz.

This has been a relatively tranquil week for mortgage rates. They haven’t varied much.

One spread that I pay attention to is the spread between the 30-year fixed and the 10-year Treasury. That spread has widened considerably.

Bank deposit taxes
Foreigners are exempt from income tax on bank deposit interest, says CPA George Saenz.

Wednesday’s Events: German Inflation Data; U.S. Durable Goods, Oil Inventories
German inflation data and comments from ECB’s Lucas Papademos will top the macroeconomic release menu for the European session as U.S. markets prepare for durable goods, weekly oil inventories and a two-year bond auction. Canada’s main releases for the day include some employment data followed by a real return bond auction at noon. Read More Now

Some Economists Find “Cheery Quality” to U.S. New Homes Sales Report
Despite 46k of downward revisions in the previous two months, which pushed the pace of new home sales lower than expected even with a 2.4% monthly rebound, economists said the Department of Commerce’s July report was positive as the level of inventories saw a notable reduction. Eric Lascelles, chief economics and rates strategist at TD Securities, said “there was an undeniably cheery quality to the report,” as the overhang of supply fell to a 10.1-month supply, down from June’s upwardly revised 10.7-month supply and marking a six-month low. Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at HFE, added: “[W]e still can’t say with any confidence that sales have hit bottom…” Read More Now

The FDIC’s loan-mod plan
Now that the FDIC controls IndyMac, an institution that used to be one of the country’s biggest mortgage lenders, she has her chance to show other mortgage servicers how it’s done.

Steps toward bankruptcy
Job loss and medical bills have likely put a reader on the path to bankruptcy, says the Bankruptcy Adviser.

FDIC’s Problem Bank List Continues to Grow
Sheila C. Bair, chairman of the FDIC said, “By any yardstick, it was another rough quarter for bank earnings, but the results were not unexpected as the industry coped with financial market disruptions, the housing slump, worsening economic conditions, and the overall downturn in the credit cycle.” Higher provisions for loan losses were cited as the primary reason for the drop in industry profit. These provisions totaled… Read More Now

Banks offer excess deposit insurance
A handful of banks are willing to insure commercial deposits above the $100,000 level, says Dr. Don Taylor.

Housing starts tumble
Housing starts tumbled in July to their lowest level since Ronald Reagan’s second year in office.

Housing data will be center of attention on Tuesday with the release of U.S. new home sales for July and the June Case- Shiller Home Price Index. U.S. new home sales are expected to fall 0.9% to 525k in July following June’s decline of 0.6%. Meanwhile, the Case-Shiller home price composite for June is expected to fall 16.2% year-over-year following May’s 15.8% decline. Read More Now

Meeting Minutes Say FOMC’s Stance Remains Neutral
The minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee’s (FOMC) Aug. 4-5 meeting show that board members “did not see the current stance of policy as particularly accommodative.” It also revealed that most members anticipate the next policy move to be a tightening of rates, but the timing and extent of any change would depend on evolving developments. Read More Now

Consumer Confidence Improves to 56.9 in August
The Conference Board’s U.S. consumer confidence index for August improved to 56.9 in Tuesday’s report, higher than the expected improvement to 53.0. “Consumer confidence readings suggest that the economy remains stuck in neutral, but may be showing signs of improvement by early next year… Read More Now

Fed’s Fisher Says Growth Could Go Negative, but Focus Remains on Inflation
Speaking in an interview with Dow Jones Newswires on Monday, Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher (voter) said growth in the U.S. could slow to zero or even turn negative in the second half of 2008, but the main issue remains whether inflation will become persistent or not. Read More Now

Economists, strategists and traders do not expect next week’s releases to shed any new light on the current economic environment. Markets will receive more data on the U.S. housing market, July’s durable goods orders, PCE report, and minutes from the FOMC Aug. 5 meeting. In Canada the only data of significance will be Q2 GDP. In other U.S. releases, markets will receive regional manufacturing data with the Richmond Fed manufacturing survey and the ISM Chicago PMI, preliminary second quarter GDP and two-year and five-year note auctions. Read More Now

U.S. Initial Jobless Claims Fall Back to 432k
Initial claims for unemployment benefits in the United States dropped back slightly to 432k in the week ending Aug. 16, coming down 13k from the previous week’s downwardly revised 445k figure, the Department of Labor reported on Thursday. Continuing claims fell to 3.362 million for the week ending Aug. 9. Read More Now

On 2006 subprime residential mortgage-backed securities, total delinquency was 41.72 percent in July, jumping from 34.17 percent in February, Standard and Poor’s Ratings Services said in a report. Foreclosures rose to 15.21 percent from 11.70 percent, and cumulative losses climbed to 3.96 percent from 1.68 percent. At the 12-month seasoning mark, the 2007 subprime vintage had substantially worse total delinquency and foreclosure rates than any other vintage since 2000.

In Face of Conflicting Economic Reports, Interest Rates Stand Pat
Mortgage interest rates for the week ended August 14 as reported from data collected by Freddie Mac from its Primary Mortgage Market Survey drifted in a very narrow range as they have done for most of 2008. The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 15 on Wednesday… Read More Now

A Frugal shopper’s best tip
Avoid the waste and environmental cost by making your own mop pads out of old washcloths.

The MBS Ratings Journal
Fitch Ratings upgraded Wilshire Credit Corp.’s primary servicer rating for Alt-A product. Moody’s Investors Service cited higher-than-anticipated rates of delinquency, foreclosure, and real estate owned in the underlying collateral relative to credit enhancement levels in its downgrade of 1,298 classes from 109 Alt-A securitizations. Fitch downgraded classes form 14 Alt-A residential mortgage-backed securities. Moody’s downgraded 34 classes from eight scratch-and-dent RMBS. Meanwhile, 16 commercial MBS classes were upgraded and six CMBS classes were downgraded.

Schumer Investigation Denied
A letter calling for legal action against Sen. Charles Schumer was signed by 51 former IndyMac Bank FSB employees and sent to California’s attorney general. Schumer was accused of violating Section 3369 of the California Financial Code. The former employees claimed that the collapse of IndyMac was the result of a letter sent to the Office of Thrift Supervision made that was made public by Schumer in which he expressed concerns about IndyMac’s ongoing viability. But California responded that it could find no legal basis for pursuing Schumer.

Commercial Real Estate Prices Down for Fourth Straight Month, Moody’s Says
Commercial real estate prices continued falling in June, according to the Moody’s/REAL Commercial Property Price Indices (CPPI), which recorded a 3.3% monthly decline, marking a 9.6% decrease from year-ago levels. Read More Now

Broker’s Business is Booming
Gary Bussard closed $23 million during the first six months of 2008, he told MortgageDaily.com in a statement. The first-half activity has him on track to surpass his full-year 2007 production of $33 million by 39 percent. Bussard, who specializes in conventional and jumbo programs, said he primarily generates business from client and relationship referrals.

Fed’s Stern Says Now Not “Appropriate Time” to Close Fannie, Freddie
Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Gary Stern said Wednesday that now is not an “appropriate time” to close government-sponsored Enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Speaking on Bloomberg Television, Stern said it is “important” for Fannie and Freddie to function and that they should be re-oriented towards lower income buyers. Read More Now

A Frugal shopper’s best tip
Avoid aggravation and beat the airline luggage fees by sending your bags ahead by mail or parcel service.

Mortgage interest rates for the week ended August 14 as reported from data collected by Freddie Mac from its Primary Mortgage Market Survey drifted in a very narrow range as they have done for most of 2008. The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 15 on Wednesday… Read More Now

Wife hopes car loan will build credit
A wife is smart to apply for a car loan separately from her husband, says Bankrate car columnist Terry Jackson.

Commercial Real Estate Prices Down for Fourth Straight Month, Moody’s Says
Commercial real estate prices continued falling in June, according to the Moody’s/REAL Commercial Property Price Indices (CPPI), which recorded a 3.3% monthly decline, marking a 9.6% decrease from year-ago levels. Read More Now

Wife won’t add spouse’s name to title
A spouse who wants to be added to his wife’s car title is out of luck, says Bankrate car columnist Terry Jackson.

Thursday’s Events: U.S. Jobless Claims, Philly Fed
Following the early-morning release of Canadian CPI, markets will now turn their attention to the release of U.S. initial and continuing jobless claims and the Philly Fed survey for August. Read More Now

Tell insurance company of enhancements
Enhancements aren’t covered until the insurance company knows of them, says Bankrate car columnist Terry Jackson.

NAR Commercial Leading Indicator Weakens, Projecting Further Declines
A leading indicator for the U.S. commercial real estate market continued decelerating for the fourth consecutive quarter on Wednesday, according to the National Association of Realtors, who also said that commercial real estate activity would weaken over the next six to nine months. Read More Now

Roth IRA requires earned income
You need earned income to be eligible to contribute to a Roth IRA, says Dr. Don Taylor.

Utility payment plans have some flaws
Equal payments may sound like a great idea, but watch out that you don’t get hit with a surprise bill at the end of the year.

Commercial real estate prices continued falling in June, according to the Moody’s/REAL Commercial Property Price Indices (CPPI), which recorded a 3.3% monthly decline, marking a 9.6% decrease from year-ago levels. Read More Now

$50 is enough to start retirement fund
A little savings is just enough to start funding a retirement kitty, says Dr. Don Taylor.

Warren Buffet Says U.S. Economy Could be Worse off in Five Months
The U.S. economy continues to be in recession and will continue to be for some time, according to billionaire investor Warren Buffet. Appearing on CNBC Friday morning, Buffet said he is confident the economy is in recession because… Read More Now

Writing off rental real estate
There are limitations on income for those who want to write off their rental property, says CPA George Saenz.

Checking out options for your grill
These days you can add a rotisserie, smoker or even infrared.

Restoring credit after bankruptcy
Paying off a debt that wasn’t reaffirmed won’t be reported to the credit agencies, says the Bankruptcy Adviser.

Business losses on a startup
When profits don’t materialize on a $90,000 business investment, there are some possible tax deductions, says CPA George Saenz.

What’s Priced In: Current Market Expectations for Future Monetary Policy
Markets are currently pricing in the following probabilities for future interest rate moves as of the close on Wednesday: FED- OIS Implied Rates Markets are pricing in a 12% chance of a 25bp hike by the next meeting on Sept. 16. Markets are pricing in a 21% chance of a 25bp hike by year-end… Read More Now

Two questions underscore the role of taxes when you receive an inheritance, says Dr. Don Taylor.

Alt-A Deterioration Led by 2007 Vintage
Total delinquency on the 2007 Alt-A vintage has risen from 9.08 percent to 14.56 percent — more than on residential mortgage-backed securities issued in 2005 or 2006. Foreclosures have gone from 2.92 percent in February to 5.46 percent in July. Cumulative losses skyrocketed from 0.03 percent to 0.29 percent.

Home sales tax for foreigners
“Mixed marriages” and real estate sales may result in a 10-percent tax, says CPA George Saenz.

Jumbo Performance Falling Fast
Total delinquency on 2006 jumbo residential mortgage-backed securities issued in 2006 was 4.47 percent in July, rising from 2.87 percent in February. Foreclosures jumped to 1.30 percent from 0.62 percent, while cumulative losses have soared to 0.10 percent from 0.02 percent. At 12 months’ seasoning, 2007 vintage jumbo RMBS are performing significantly worse than any vintage since 2000.

Hope for mobile home buyers
This has been a relatively tranquil week for mortgage rates. They haven’t varied much.

Reader Q&A
Readers’ questions about mortgages.