Stunning Resilience One could argue that our bar is set too low if we view today's bond market resilience as "stunning," but if that's not the right word, it's damn close. Last Thursday saw yields drop 8bps, largely due to a trio of labor market reports […]

Mortgage rates moved 0.03% higher today. On almost any other day, this would be a bit of a bummer, but in today's case, it's a victory. There was a ton of potential volatility in the underlying bond market heading into the day due to the scheduled release of the big monthly jobs report. In […]

Mortgage application activity was essentially flat last week, almost impressively so. After much recent volatility, the index is finding a brief moment of stability, and borrowers seem content continue to weigh affordability challenges and wait for clearer movement in rates. The Mortgage Bankers […]

Products, Services, and Software for Brokers and Lenders “Escrow is supposed to be predictable. But in default servicing, that predictability diminishes when a loan enters delinquency. Escrows stop being a background process and turns into a manual, high-risk exercise. As core systems fall back […]

Nearly an hour after this morning's surprisingly strong jobs report, 10yr yields are only 4.4bps higher at 4.19%. On a normal day, 4.4bps might be a fairly big sell-off, but it's a huge victory on a day where payrolls came in at 130k vs 70k forecast, and where the unemployment rate fell to 4.3 vs […]

Best Levels in Weeks Ahead of High Stakes Jobs Report Rather than circle the wagons and consolidate the recent rally, bonds kicked the buying into higher gear on Tuesday thanks to a surprisingly weak Retail Sales report for December. This can be added to […]

Mortgage rates fell on Tuesday following a downbeat Retail Sales report. At 0.05%, it was the largest single-day drop since the uncommonly big 0.15% drop on January 9th. This also takes the average 30yr fixed rate to 6.11%, easily below its recently narrow range of 6.15-6.20. The bonds that drive […]

Products, Services, and Software for Brokers and Lenders There’s a reason $5.99 feels different than $6.00. Behavioral economists call it the “left-digit effect.” When it comes to mortgage rates, borrowers just call it a reason to refinance. Optimal Blue’s January Market Advantage report […]

Last Thursday, we discussed the paradox of a rally in the present moment being driven by future data. More specifically, the three downbeat labor market reports increased the stakes for tomorrow's jobs report. Depending on trends and trading positions, risks can be asymmetrical. A trader who […]

Early Volatility And a Decent Recovery Bonds lost ground in the overnight session after Chinese regulators cautioned banks against holding US Treasuries. That move was short-lived and more than fully erased before 9am ET. Part of the bounce back can be […]