The day after Thanksgiving is a busy shopping day nationwide and, this year, analysts are paying extra attention to sales figures.
Dubbed “Black Friday” in reference to red ink representing loss and black ink representing gain, today’s start to the Holiday Shopping season is believed to be the day that retailer balance sheets finally cross over to profitability.
But the accounting connotation of the phrase “Black Friday” wasn’t its original usage — it’s a media-coined term.
When the phrase was first used in Philadelphia in 1975, it was in reference to the day after Thanksgiving being the busiest shopping and traffic day of the year.
There’s other Black Friday trivia out there, too:
Did you know? Black Friday is neither the largest, nor the most profitable, shopping day of the year. Contrary to popular wisdom, it’s the 5th biggest, not the first. The two weekends before Christmas are usually the “biggest” series of days.
Did you know? In an attempt to spur the economy in 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt proposed to move Thanksgiving ahead by 7 days. 7 more days of shopping, he thought, would help retailers and help the economy. Eventually, the idea dubbed “Franksgiving” failed.
Did you know? To protect competitors from price matching “deals”, some retailers copyright their Black Friday advertising. Others won’t print prices at all.
Did you know? Last year, 14 percent of Black Friday shoppers had made a purchase prior to 4:00 A.M. with an average ticket of $347.
Black Friday is of special significance this year because consumer spending accounts for two-thirds of the U.S. economy. If Americans are shopping in full force, expect economic optimism and a mild rebound in the stock market. Unfortunately for home buyers, this should also lead mortgage rates higher.
By contrast, if sales figures are weak, expect talk of recession to grow.
Sources Black Friday (Shopping) Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Friday_%28shopping%29
Geek Trivia: Early bird special Tech Republic Jay Garmon, Nov 22, 2005 http://articles.techrepublic.com.com/5100-10878_11-5958978.html
Like everything else on Wall Street, mortgage markets are based on supply and demand. When demand outweighs supply, mortgage rates fall.
So, Tuesday, when the government unexpectedly announced a $500 billion budget for buying mortgage debt from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the demand side of the mortgage market ballooned.
The surprise demand helped push mortgage rates to their lowest levels since January 22, 2008. 30-year fixed mortgage rates were down by as much as three-quarters of a percent Tuesday before retreating higher.
Not coincidentally, January 22, 2008, was the date of another unexpected government intervention — a surprise 0.750 percent Fed Funds Rate cut that was meant to spur the economy forward.
Interventions like these are a big reason why predicting mortgage rates is tough business — just when you discover the market’s balance point, an outside force shifts that balance, creating tremendous amounts of uncertainty about the future.
Uncertainty on Wall Street is typically bad for mortgage rate shoppers because it leads to high levels of volatility. Look at the trading pattern from Market Open to Market Close yesterday:
8:30 AM ET: Markets open with rates falling on the news
10:00 AM ET : Rates fall more on momentum trading
12:00 PM ET : Rates level at their lowest levels of the day
2:00 PM ET : Rates rise as profit-taking begins
3:30 PM ET : Rates rise more on momentum trading
4:00 PM ET : Markets close with rates down by half
Again, not coincidentally, this is the exact trading pattern from January 22, 2008. On that day, rates were at their lowest about 3 hours into trading, and then consistently rose all the way into Market Close — just like we saw Tuesday.
Unfortunately, in the 30 days that followed January 22, mortgage rates rose from a 3-year low to a 3-year high. And, it’s not to say that the same thing will happen from now through December 25, but trading patterns have a tendency to repeat themselves over time.
Mortgage markets seek balance and when there’s a dramatic shift, chaos can creates opportunity. Tuesday’s $500 billion pledge added new demand and shocked the mortgage market system. Before long, it recovered to find balance.
As of today, mortgage rates are still hovering near their 3-year lows so if you haven’t spoken to your loan officer about a refinance, consider calling today.
In real estate, the term existing home refers to a “used” property; one that can’t be classified as new construction.
The number of existing homes sold each month is tracked by the National Association of REALTORS. The report is often used as a gauge for the health of the real estate market nationwide.
In October, nearly 5 million existing homes sold across the U.S. This figure represents a slight drop from September’s reading, and a equally slight drop from the October 2007 data.
But, October’s Existing Home Sales figures marked the 14th straight month in which Existing Home Sales straddled 5-million units. This is a remarkable statistic because 14 months of anything is a pattern, not a blip. Despite what the news tells us, Americans are buying and selling real estate at a somewhat steady clip.
As we head into the Holiday Season, buyer activity should slow, reducing demand for homes. At the same time, however, widespread foreclosure moratoriums should reduce the number of homes available to buy. These forces should counter-act to help keep the market (and prices) in balance.
To run at peak efficiency, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) unit must be kept clean. Efficiency saves power which, in turn, saves money.
Watch the 1-minute video above and learn how to replace an air filter. HVAC air filters should be changed at least quarterly, with more frequent replacements in certain homes:
Homes under construction or in repair
Newly-built homes with loose dust in the air
Homes of families with allergies or asthma
Homes of families with shedding pets
Be aware, however, that not all air filters are created alike.
When it comes to air purification, you often get what you pay for as The Carey Brothers prove in this other 1-minute video. Using “The Salt Test”, we see with our own eyes how 99-cent filters are inferior to $16 ones.
Business television and newspapers have made deflation a hot topic this week and, since Monday, Google has tracked 13,000 mentions of it.
Deflation is a recurring cycle in which the prices of goods and services fall. Isolated to one industry or sector, falling prices is the natural result of competition.
For example, when DVD players were first introduced, they were tagged at $800.
Across many industries, however, and happening at the same time, falling prices can shut down the economy. Rather than buy things on the cheap, people stop buying anything at all. And why would they? The same items will cost less tomorrow.
And this is the problem with deflation — it halts consumer spending and consumer spending makes up two-thirds of the U.S. economy. When it stops, the economic result is dwindling corporate revenues which leads to:
Layoffs of the workforce, which leads to…
Less consumer spending, which leads to…
Dwindling corporate revenues, which leads to…
And the spiral continues.
Deflation can be much more insidious that its expansionary counterpart — inflation. Inflation is when the prices generally rise over time and it’s an economic condition through which governments can comfortably navigate. Deflation, on the other hand, is more rare and, therefore, fewer practical control measures exist.
Whether the U.S. economy will slip into deflation is a matter of debate.
The Fed has cut the Fed Funds Rate to promote economic growth and those changes can take up to 12 months to work their way through the economy. Deflationary pressures we’re seeing today, in other words, may have already been addressed and corrected by Ben Bernanke’s 10 rate cuts in the last 14 months.
Until the market figures it out, though, expect that each mention of deflation will hurt the stock market and help the bond market — including the mortgage-backed variety. This should help lower mortgage rates and make homes more affordable.
When it comes to housing data, there are always two questions to consider:
How does this impact buyers?
How does this impact sellers?
This is why housing data is rarely positive or negative on a universal level — one group of Americans is going to see benefit.
Today, it’s home sellers.
From the government, we learn that Housing Starts fell to their lowest levels since 1947 last month. A “Housing Start” is a new housing unit on which construction has started. Building permits are down, too.
This is all good news for people selling their homes in the coming months. As fewer homes are built nationwide, there is less inventory from which home buyers can choose. With fewer homes for sale shifts the supply-and-demand curve, adding a stronger support floor to home prices.
For home buyers, though, the Housing Starts data may not be as welcome.
With fewer new homes coming on the market, owners of “used” homes may feel less pressure to lower asking prices or to make other concessions. Home buyers often pay more when home supply is falling, or find that sellers are less willing to add “throw-ins” to a contract.
For all of the analysis that surrounds real estate data, in the end, home prices are based on the supply of homes versus the demand for homes. When supply outpaces demand, home prices fall, and vice verse.
Homebuilders know this and October’s Housing Starts data reflects it.
If the presence of inflation causes mortgage rates to rise, then the absence of inflation should cause mortgage rates to fall. And, in most markets that’s true.
Today, it’s not.
Despite a deep dip in consumer prices not seen since 1947, mortgage rates are inching higher this morning.
Higher mortgage rates make homes less affordable to home buyers.
The main reason why rates are rising today is that the Cost of Living didn’t just ease last month — it plunged. In fact, the monthly drop was so severe that Wall Street now questions whether this summer’s record-breaking inflation will lead to equally-strong deflation this winter.
In economic terms, deflation is the opposite of inflation — it’s when prices and wages chase each other lower. The two can be equally bad for the economy. What’s often best for Americans are moderate, steady readings.
Because of the rapid decline, markets fear that Consumer Prices may have swung way past moderate in October and started a downward spiral. As always, however, market opinions can change quickly and when they do, they usually take mortgage rates with them.
In March 2008, HUD temporarily raised FHA loan limits around the country. Effective January 1, 2009, FHA loan limits revert.
FHA home loans are mortgages made by private lenders and insured by the federal government.
Historically, FHA home loans have been “easier” for which to qualify than their conforming mortgage counterparts and, therefore, tend to be associated with borrowers of tarnished credit quality.
Today, that’s the not the case.
The FHA home loan underwriting process can be as tough — or tougher — than a conforming mortgage underwrite. There is extra documentation required and the home appraisal process is often more thorough.
Where FHA home loans shine is in their limited downpayment requirements.
To purchase a home with a FHA-insured mortgage requires a 3 percent downpayment as of today; in January, it moves to 3.5 percent. Versus the typical conforming mortgage requirement of 5 percent or more, FHA serves as somewhat of a home affordability product for Americans. In addition, FHA allows larger “cash out” refinances than Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.
Note that the loan limits don’t apply to all areas of the country equally. Higher-cost regions feature higher loan limits, based on typical home values. Homes in Los Angeles County, for example, can be FHA-insured up to $625,500 in 2009, and there are exceptions made for Alaska and Hawaii.
The official FHA announcement published all of the counties with access to higher loan limits, spread across two spreadsheets. The first spreadsheet lists each county at the $625,500 maximum; the second list is everyone else.
If your home county is on neither list, use the “base” numbers above.
Vacuum cleaners are meant clean our homes, but in addition to picking up dirt, dust and mites, most vacuum cleaners also spread harmful bacteria.
As revealed in this this 4-minute video from NBC’s Today Show, E. Coli, salmonella and other virus-causing entities are commonly found on vacuum cleaner under-bristles and, in some cases, bacteria can be 100 times more concentrated than on a public toilet seat.
The video goes on to give some general rules to limit indoor germ exposure — some more practical than others. The rules include:
Avoid wearing shoes indoors
Wash your hands after playing on the carpets and rugs
Don’t stop vacuuming
And, of course, having the right hardware can help, too.
If it’s time to replace that old vacuum, start your search online with a discount store like GoVacuum.com. Most online sites will have a wider selection than your local hardware store and shipping is usually free.
To help demystify the mortgage process, the federal government is giving the much-maligned Good Faith Estimate document a makeover. Effective January 1, 2010, the current, 2-page form will be replaced by a new, easier-to-understand version, spanning 3 pages.
The biggest strength of the new Good Faith Estimate is that it uses everyday English to explain how the mortgage works. For example, in one section titled “Loan Summary”, the Good Faith Estimate specifically answers:
What is your interest rate?
Can your interest rate rise?
Does your loan have a prepayment penalty?
Using today’s disclosures, the answers are spread across 3 separate forms.
In addition, the new-look Good Faith Estimate identifies what charges are legally allowed change at the time of settlement, and how a mortgage applicant can opt for higher fees in exchange for a lower mortgage rate, and vice versa.
These educational elements are lacking from the current model.
But for all of its clarity, the Good Faith Estimate doesn’t address the issue of suitability. As in, is this the right loan for the right borrower? The new Good Faith Estimate won’t prevent homeowners from choosing “bad loans” — it will only educate them about the loan’s facts.
For suitable advice — as always — talk with a trusted mortgage professional who will both listen to your needs and help you make plans for them. Getting the “best terms” on an unsuitable loan can be far worse that getting great terms on a loan that fits.
And those 4 states — California, Florida, Arizona, and Nevada — share some very similar characteristics including:
Their respective popularity with retirees and real estate investors
Their large home value increases earlier this decade
In looking at the rest of the country’s foreclosure data, the remaining 46 states combined accounted for just 48.8 percent of October’s foreclosures.
That’s 1.06% per state on average.
Now, this isn’t meant to diminish the impact of foreclosures on the economy — quite the opposite. Foreclosures harm to the national housing market because most mortgage lenders are national. But, we highlight statistics like this to show that the foreclosure “problem” isn’t so bad in most parts of the country, relative.
Furthermore, mortgage lenders are intervening to slow the flow of defaults nationwide. Following the lead of JP Morgan and Bank of America, CitiMortgage announced a sweeping plan this week to help homeowners avoid default and stay in their homes.
In a way, for as good as this news is for homeowners, it’s equally bad news for home buyers. As the number of foreclosures decrease in any given market, it reduces the inventory of homes for sale. Lower supply levels often lead to higher sale prices and less room to negotiate.
And this may be what the banks are trying to accomplish.
Loans in excess of conforming loan limits are more commonly called “jumbo”, or “super jumbo” home loans, depending on their size.
Out-sized mortgages like these are often more costly than their conforming-mortgage counterparts because jumbo loans are not guaranteed by the U.S. government like Fannie Mae loans are.
There are exceptions to the loan limits, however.
Left over from the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008, specific, “high-cost” areas around the country have their own conforming loan limits, not to exceed $625,500. There are 59 designated high-cost regions in the U.S., most of which are in California.
Loan limits are re-assigned each year, based on “typical” housing costs around the country. Since 1980, as home prices have increased, so have conforming loan limits. As home prices have fallen in recent years nationwide, however, the conforming loan limit has not.
If the amount of air that leaked from a typical home’s gaps and cracks was measured, it would equal the amount of air that leaves through an open window.
This is why so many Home & Garden experts recommend a recaulking of your home prior to the Winter — a solid caulk job can reduce a home’s Winter energy bill by 20 percent.
In this 2-minute video from Home Depot, learn how you can to identify leaky windows, and then how to fix them using caulk, putty knives and a host of other tools. Or, if DIY is not your style, find a competent contractor online.
On the first Friday of every month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its Non-Farm Payrolls report.
More commonly, it’s called the “jobs report” and the October’s data is trending with the rest of 2008.
After shedding another 240,000 jobs last month, the economy has now put 1.2 million Americans out of work this year and unemployment rates have climbed to 14-year highs.
As a strange twist, though, today’s weak jobs data may lead to a positive turn for the economy and for housing in 2009.
In the wake of the jobs report, members of Congress are already calling for both tax cuts and direct stimulus to reverse the course of the economy. Both of these actions would put money back into U.S. citizens’ household budgets, spurring consumer spending nationwide.
Because consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of the economy, this would be expected to push the economy forward at a time when it natural forces are slowing it down.
In addition, markets are betting that the Federal Reserve will cut the Fed Funds Rate below its current 1.000 percent level. This, too, would spur spending because the Fed Funds Rate is directly tied to consumer credit card rates and business credit lines.
Expectations for stimulus are one reason why mortgage rates have not risen today as high as they otherwise would have if this were a “normal” market.
Mortgage rates are slightly elevated as we head into the weekend, but don’t be surprised if there’s a late-afternoon push that brings them lower. For active home buyers, this could help home affordability as we cruise towards the holiday season.
The interest rate against which adjustable-rate mortgages change is falling — evidence that the global banking system is starting to stabilize.
This is good news for U.S. housing markets.
On any adjustable-rate mortgage, the initial “starter rate” remains fixed for some period of time, and then adjusts according to some pre-determined rules.
For a conforming mortgage, an ARM will typically adjust once per year, based on this formula:
(Adjusted Rate) = (Variable) + (Constant)
Where the variable is often assigned to 12-month LIBOR, and the constant is often fixed at 2.250 percent.
LIBOR is the equation’s variable. Therefore, it’s of paramount import to holders of ARMs. LIBOR is the rate at which banks lend money to each other. The 12-month LIBOR, therefore, is the borrowing rate for a 1-year, interbank loan.
So, to take the formula and apply to an real live mortgage, a homeowner’s adjusted mortgage rate would be equal to whatever the 12-month LIBOR is at the time of adjustment, plus another 2.250 percent.
Looking at the chart, note LIBOR spiked in September. It’s a direct correlation to the September 15 failure of Lehman Brothers. That bank shutdown started a wave of “who’s going to be next?” anxiety on Wall Street but as global governments stepped up support for banks, LIBOR predictably fell.
For homeowners with adjusting mortgages, this is terrific news.
However, mortgage markets have rallied a bit this week, created an interesting opportunity for some ARM-holders. Depending on credit scores and the amount of home equity, mortgage rates on a new loan may be lower that the soon-to-be-adjusted mortgage rate of the old one.
In other words, getting a new loan may be smarter than letting your current mortgage change. Contact your mortgage lender to see which plan fits you best.
Like everything else on Wall Street, mortgage markets are based on supply and demand. When demand outweighs supply, mortgage rates fall.
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In March 2008, HUD temporarily raised FHA loan limits around the country. Effective January 1, 2009, FHA loan limits revert.
For the 4th consecutive year, the government has set the conforming mortgage loan size limit at $417,000.
The interest rate against which adjustable-rate mortgages change is falling — evidence that the global banking system is starting to stabilize.
