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| Real Talk About Real Estate Mortgages |
Notice to North Carolina and South Carolina mortgage borrowers. Watch your rates on FHA, VA, USDA and conventional mortgages. The combination of foreign government bond downgrades, large Treasury auctions and the end of the FED MBS purchase program means rates have headed up and will remain volatile. So, NC and SC borrowers should be locking or watching the markets carefully.
Check out the comment from Freddie Mac about mortgage rates:
After hitting an all-time low in early December, the average rate on a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage rose to 5.05 percent this week and could climb to 6 percent by the end of 2010, if not sooner, according to giant mortgage financier Freddie Mac.
Washington Post
It is no wonder they are calling for higher mortgage rates. The Treasury is issuing new debt as fast as it can auction it off. Deficits are rising. And the Fed has slowed down its purchase of mortgage backed securities. Plus, as mortgage deliquencies rise, investors will continue to require higher premiums above Treasuries of equal maturity. What this means for North Carolina and South Carolina mortgage rates is simple. We need the Fed to continue to purchase MBS to keep rates and spreads low. A rise to 6% mortgage rates will greater hinder any recovery in North and South Carolina real estate as well as nationwide. So come on Big Ben. We still need some help out here.
In an apparent move by the Obama administration, government-controlled Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced plans to suspend foreclosure evictions during the holidays. The moves follow a similar action by Citigroup Inc. — which the government has a big stake in.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is adding two dozen locations where borrowers can come in and try to workout delinquent and potentially delinquent mortgages. More than 5,000 loan modification counselors are employed by the company.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development plans to lift the 1% cap on origination fees for Federal Housing Administration-insured loans. Look for an official announcement shortly.