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Mark Hemingway

Mortgage Market Update for February 13th

Monday, February 13, 2017 - Article by: Mark Hemingway - Security Financial Services, LLC - Message

Fed Chair Yellen will be testifying on the state of the U.S. economy on Tuesday and Wednesday in front of the Senate Banking Committee and the House Financial Services Committee, which could impact the markets. Ms. Yellen will most likely not drop any hints as to the timing of the next interest rate hike, but she also won't rule out a hike the the short-term Fed Funds Rate. Fed Fund Futures currently show a 30% chance of a hike to the Fed Funds Rate at next month's two-day FOMC meeting on the March 14 and 15.

Seriously underwater homes declined dramatically in 2016 as prices continue to edge higher around the country. An improving job market and slightly better wage growth were a few factors for the rise in prices as potential buyers sought out a somewhat limited supply of homes for sale. ATTOM Date Solutions reported that at the end of 2016 there were less that 1 million seriously underwater properties than in 2015 with the number at 5.4 million. The 5.4 million represents 9.6% of all U.S. properties with a mortgage, the lowest percentage sine ATTOM began tracking in 2012.

U.S. Stocks continued their winning ways to begin the week as investors remained bullish on President Trump's economic policies as the major indexes hit fresh record intraday highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average hit an all-time high of 20,441.48 with the S&P hitting 2,331.58 and the Nasdaq at an all-time high of 5,770.98. The closely watched S&P 500 Index reached $20 trillion for the first time in market cap for those 500 companies within the index. Just last week, President Trump announced a "phenomenal" tax plan over the next two or three weeks, which reignited the rally after stalling for several weeks.

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