Mortgage Rate Update December 10, 2012
Mortgage rates are priced modestly worse compared to the last ‘rate update’ but still trade within a very tight range.
I wish I had a new storyline to report but the financial markets remain focused on the fiscal cliff negotiations. Last week the GOP had indicated it might be willing to soften its stance on tax increases for the wealthy in exchange for entitle reform from the Demo’s. But, still nothing concrete has been proposed and the clock continues to tick.
I maintain that nothing will get done on this until the last minute or after we’ve gone over the cliff. In the meantime mortgage rates should remain low. We may see some volatility next week as the window begins to close on getting a budget deal done prior to the end of the year.
In Europe, Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti announced he would resignhis position over the weekend.

The moved surprised many in the markets and is causing some uncertainty about the future leadership of the cash-strapped EU country. Uncertainty is generally good for US interest rates.
The economic calendar gets busy later this week and the US Treasury is set to auction $66 billion in new debt Tuesday-Thursday.
Current Outlook: floating