February, 2008 Jobless Claims Up- Points to Recession
Jobless claims were announced for the week, and were up more than expectations, with the moving average up to 360,500. This number is close to the 362,000 moving average seen at the start of the last two recessions.
The report re-ignites fears of stagflation, a period of high unemployment, stunted growth, and inflation.
Ben Bernanke is in the hot seat and is testifying before the senate today. The Fed's next move will be ...
PCI or Personal Consumption Expenditure, climbed by a whopping 1.0% in January, more than double expectation. Core PCI, which takes fuel and food out of the equation, also jumped by double expectations, 0.4% for January.
The hot readings put PCI at a smoking 7.4% year-over-year, and 2.3% for core PCI. This hot reading is no doubt bad news to the FOMC as they prepare for their next meeting in March. Rates cuts can help ...
posted by rjbaxter February 26, 2008 9:45 | permalink | comments(0) | Real Estate Adjustable Mortgage Rates Down
Over the past year, adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) have not been very popular. Not only do consumers have to accept the fact that the ARM will eventually change in interest rate and payment, but the spread between fixed-rate mortgages and adjustable mortgages was minimal, allowing for little benefit for an ARM vs a fixed rate mortgage.
In recent months, however, with the FOMC rate cuts, ARM rates have started to come down again, and we ...
There has been a lot of commentary out there from various sources, both media and blogs, that loan limit increases will help very few homeowners. This is, in my opinion, a myth.
True, the increase in conforming loan limits will only affect some higher-cost areas, and home owners who are over-mortgaged will not be helped by the plan.
However, if the FHA loan limit increases to a minimum of $417,000 in all areas, ...
President Bush is set to sign into law a $168 billion stimulus package on Wednesday. One of the more important parts of this plan for the housing sector will be to raise the conforming and FHA loan limits to 125% of the median home price or $729,000, whichever is lower, in all counties in the US.
This will be a big deal in places like California and the east coast, where home prices are ...
posted by rjbaxter February 11, 2008 11:03 | permalink | comments(0) | Real Estate Are Mortgage Points Tax Deductible
It's that time of year again- time to gather up all of the financials from the last year and file your taxes.
Home ownership remains one of the best tax breaks a family can have. Everyone knows that mortgage interest is tax deducible, but there are many other home-related tax deductions that you can take advantage of.**
One of these deductions is mortgage points. One "point" is equivalent to 1% of your loan ...
Recession now looks to be in full swing, and the markets are showing it. The DJIA tumbled more than 300 points on fears that the economy is in recession.
This, however, is good for mortgage rates. Rates continued to improve today, and may get better throughout the week. If you missed out on the one-day window of opportunity a couple weeks ago, when rates got really low, it is now a good time to ...
