Mortgage Rate Update September 8, 2011

Mortgage rates are unchanged this morning.

Pricing on mortgage rates has shifted slightly worse since Tuesday but overall interest rates have held steady this week as we thought.  That could all change today as the markets await two highly anticipated speeches.

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is scheduled to speak today in Minnesota.  Some analysts believe he will hint towards a third round of quantitative easing.  Depending on the size and shape of such a program we could see interest rates fall on the news.  The reality is that the earliest we’d hear details about a plan would be on September 21st following the Fed’s next monetary policy meeting.

President Obama is scheduled to speak to a joint session of Congress this evening and unveil a $300-$400 billion fiscal stimulus plan designed to spur job growth.  It will be interesting to see how politicians position themselves following the speech given that the economy is need of a jolt yet we just got done with a contentious battle over government austerity.

At the end of the day I expect mortgage rates to shift within a tight range until September 21st when the Fed may announce additional monetary stimulus measures.  Developments in Europe are also likely to play a role but it seems like sentiment on the ongoing debt crisis shifts back and forth each day.

Current Outlook:  neutral