I get it. It is not great out there. Still, I never thought I would see the day. I also wish my son had chosen an indoor sport. I drove to Charlottesville yesterday to watch them scrimmage ahead of opening weekend next weekend, and the moment I walked into the stadium, it started snowing. No bueno. Baseball is not meant to be played in the snow.
Market Notes
It was a pretty quiet week in the market overall, with mortgage rates remaining stable to fractionally lower for a few programs. The market did react positively to some second-tier economic reports released Thursday that showed early signs of weakness in the labor market.
One of the reasons the FED waited as long as it did to begin cutting short-term rates was because the labor market appeared so strong. Once signs of weakness began to show, the FOMC made three short-term cuts, and long-term mortgage rates came down ahead of those moves. Since then, the market has remained relatively stable while waiting for clearer evidence that inflation is moving closer to the 2 percent target.
The thought process is fairly simple. If more people are unemployed or employers are hiring fewer workers, inflation pressure should ease. We will see how that plays out over the coming weeks and months. As always, weaker economic news is generally positive for mortgage rates.
Looking Ahead*
The big-ticket employment data, the monthly jobs report, was delayed due to the temporary shutdown and will now be released this coming Wednesday. If that report confirms what we saw in this week’s data, there is potential for some improvement in rates. Stronger-than-expected data would likely push rates higher than current levels. Stay tuned.
Hope you enjoyed the Super Bowl, and if we can help with anything, please feel free to call.
-Steve-
*All loans are subject to credit approval and program guidelines.