The Chicago 77

3 September 2010 – Einstein once said, “Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. THAT’S relativity.” This concept is very important to this commentary as relativity is the guiding principal from which […]

27 August 2010 – For those of you that did not read or heed my post last week, congratulations. You have received a reprieve on low rates. Continued abysmal housing data released this week reinforced the belief that we are far from turning the corner on our current economic woes. Existing home sales dropped by […]

cheap celebrex There is a great misconception that there are no options for struggling homeowners. The reality is that major players in the mortgage lending market, specifically Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and HUD (The Department of Housing and Urban Development), would like to avoid foreclosures whenever possible. As a result, they have created loan programs designed with this end […]

20 August 2010 – Well folks, we may have hit the bottom, at least in the short-term that is. Rates ticked a bit lower than last week Monday and Tuesday, but began a mild movement upward by the middle of the week. This slight change was likely less the result of economic factors than the […]

13 Aug 2010 – I have Calypso music in my ears this week as my fingers dance around the keys. The mortgage limbo dance has continued with lending rates once again reaching record lows this week. In short, rates have never ever in the recorded history of rates been this low. To put it in […]

viagra canada prescription FHA (Federal Housing Administration) insured loans are headed for a big change. For those unfamiliar with FHA mortgages, these loans are insured by the government, which allows for flexible approval guidelines. This insurance is paid for by the borrower as an upfront premium collected at close and as a smaller premium collected […]

6 Aug 2010 – As I begin this week’s commentary, I think to myself “does it make sense to write the same thing week after week?” I feel that I risk becoming like Ben Stein in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off droning on to a disinterested audience, but, then again, this continued low rate environment offers […]

30 July 2010 – As I look back over this and the last few weeks from a rate perspective, I think of the French saying “plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.” It says that the more things change, the more they stay the same and this sentiment definitely applies for mortgage rates. In short, rates remained extremely low […]

23 July 2010 –Rates began the week coming off the lowest mortgage rates we have seen to date, so things could not have gotten much better. Economic news was generally favorable with good earnings data for many companies across several industries, which helped equities markets. This had an adverse effect on mortgage rates to the […]

16 July 2010 –I must admit that sometimes I feel like the guy at the craps table betting against the come. The one who revels in repeated cold streaks as he scrapes stacks of chips from the table while everyone else loses. When I feel this guilt, however, I just remember that the scourge of […]

The condominium is a great type of property. It provides the joy of ownership with minimum amount of maintenance, but it is also a type of property that strikes a bit trepidation into the heart of lenders. Think of it as the difference between running the 100-meter hurdles versus a simple 100-meter dash. You get […]

9 July 2010 – This was a short week in the markets following the Independence Day weekend. Mortgage rates were, for the most part, unchanged with a minor increase over the past several days due to a rally in equities predicated on positive jobs and retail sales figures. Additionally, there has been an optimistic atmosphere […]

July 2nd, 2010 It’s beginning to feel like Groundhog Day in the mortgage world. Unbelievably, rates have continued to drop. Once again the equities markets have under-performed and the resulting flight to quality is fueling demand for U.S. Treasuries and, in turn, mortgage backed securities. Record or near record lows have been the norm for […]