Last week ended basically where it began with mortgage backed securities holding near six month lows. During the entire week, MBS traded in a very tight range resulting in mortgage rates holding in the 4.625% to 4.875% range for well qualified consumers. The week ahead is shortened by Thanksgiving on Thursday which will keep all markets closed and we have an early close on Friday.

This morning the economic data starts with a report on the strength of the housing sector from the National...

In 2009 :
Lo : 46 °
Hi : 58 ° Normal
Rainfall : Trace “ Sprinkles fell during the 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. hours.

In 2008 :
Lo : 14 ° ** Record Coldest
Hi : 45 °
Rainfall : 0.00 ”

In 2007 :
Lo : 36 °
Hi : 45 °
Rainfall : 0.00 “

In 2006 :
Lo : 23 °
Hi : 58 ° Normal
Rainfall : 0.00 “

In 2005 :
Lo : 34 °
Hi : 51 ° ...

Who is Eligible

• First-time home buyers, who are defined by the law as buyers who have not owned a principal residence during the three-year period prior to the purchase, may be eligible for a tax credit of 10% of the home purchase price, up to a maximum of $8,000.
• Existing home owners who have been residing in their principal residence for five consecutive years out of the last eight and are purchasing a home to be their principal residence (“repeat buyer”), may be eligible for a tax credit

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November 19, 2009 - Nationwide housing affordability, bolstered by affordable interest rates and low house prices, hovered for the third consecutive quarter near its highest level since the series was first compiled 18 years ago, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI) released today.

The HOI showed that 70.1 percent of all new and existing homes sold in the third quarter of 2009 were affordable to families earning the national...

November 17, 2009 - The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) is spreading the word to consumers about an important new law that extends and expands an attractive tax incentive for potential home buyers. The Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009, signed into law by President Obama on Nov. 6, extends the deadline for the first-time home buyer tax credit and gives a larger group of home buyers the chance to take advantage of this government program.
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