When I run the numbers on a specific house to see what offer price we can afford, I typically pull an current rate from http://www.bankrate.com/. In the past, when I have queried a 30yr fixed rate, conforming loan with no points for the Sacramento area, Bankrate returned several pages of loan products that met my criteria.
This evening, only 6 products came up! I had to double check my criteria to make sure I didn't hit some weird option on accident. But it was no mistake....in fact other loan types had even fewer products.
The screws are seriously tightening......
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Looks like Mrs. and Mr. BT are getting serious! :-)
Good luck!
While we are rather serious, I don't think the sellers are. I doubt they will accept our very resonable offer (1998 sales price plus 3.5% inflation, with another 20k bonus for some of the recent remodeling) cause it would put them underwater by about 70k.
BT, I like your thinking on those numbers >; )
Hmmm I ran my criteria and came up with 2, Union Bank and Quicken. I noticed that the only downs they would accept on a 30fixed was 5% and 20%.
Forgot to mention I was using the 20% downpayment option....with only 6 results....you would have thought I was looking at an I/O with 2% down.
(And it was probably obvious, but the 3.5% was annual inflation).
Although I use the 'net for rough loan price determinations, I suspect that when the time comes, you might get slightly better pricing and service from some, but not all, local mortgage brokers. It's hard to negotiate interest rates and points with a website, but easy to do over the telephone. And despite what the brokers will tell you about everyone paying the same cost for money, interest rates and points are negotiable depending on how motivated the originator is.
Funny thing - I was opening the mail over the weekend and got an offer for a new HELOC from Countrywide. After all the news about cutting people off it just doesn't make sense.
BT - I like those numbers too. I doubt any seller would though, at least for now.
I just did a search for a 30 yr fixed jumbo at 500,000 with 20% down and got 9 results. Almost all of them had interest rates well into the 7's, and a couple in the 8s.
Mortgage rates have really been rising the past couple of weeks. I was fortunate to be in the middle of refinancing and was able to lock in a 4.875% 30-year rate (1.125 points) when rates bottomed out on January 23 right after the Fed's 0.75% rate cut. Late that day the stock market shot up, taking mortgage rates with it, and the rates have been trending up ever since. Currently, 30-year fixed rates are around 6.125 - 6.25 percent.
They just took another jump this morning. So much for all those people thinking they were going to be able to refi into a another low rate fixed. When people cheer a cut in the over night rates, they really have no idea what they asking for do they?
cpi report doesn't help anyone looking for a 30y fixed. G - if we get a good deflationary scare the rates will probably dip again.
"When people cheer a cut in the over night rates, they really have no idea what they asking for do they?"
Generally, no, I don't think they do.
Here's a nice summary of why mortgage rates have been jumping around over the past month:
The Mortgage Reports Blog
Be careful on that "Mortgage Reports Blog" - that guy appears to be selling himself very hard. Additionally, he is offering some very tainted advice that is NOT true.
Example: He's advocating you use a 30-year loan vs. a 15 year loan, assuming you can pay at a 15 year payment. He then recommends you invest the difference ($467 in his example) into an investment account. He describes the beauty of the arrangement that you get the mortgage deduction on all that extra mortgage interest you paid, and you build a big-fat account with cash.
So, Mr. Math conveniently forgets to include the very real taxes you are going to pay on any earnings from these "savings." He also neglects to include any accounting for investment account risk. Finally, he's projecting a rate of 5% return, as "conservative" - it is not conservative in this market.
I'm including the link, but I'd suggest being really careful with anyone who has "discovered" new truths about finance and taxes, yet is not qualified in either area.
http://www.themortgagereports.com/2006/02/the_15year_mort.html
You don't get something for nothing. Paying more interest to a bank in order to save a fraction of that interest in taxes is a fool's game.
The best lie is sprinkled with truth. Saving is good, reducing taxes is good. This plan is a partial dud.
-Ed
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