In This Issue…

Last Week in Review: How Low Can You Go?

Forecast for the Week: Expecting More Volatility

The Mortgage Market Guide View: Why Video Marketing is Good for Your Business

Last Week in Review:

How Low Can You Go?

Home loan rates touched all-time lows this past week, fueling refinance activity and creating a sense of urgency for homebuyers to lock in purchase loans.

The question many people are asking is, “how low can rates go?”

The short answer — no one knows. A lot will be determined by the economic impact of the coronavirus and that is impossible to handicap at the moment.

What we do know:

  • The coronavirus outbreak is improving in China and the outbreak numbers here in the U.S. have not exploded, as of yet. This is good news, and should it continue, it is unlikely we will see much lower home loan rates in the near future.
  • Home loan rates have not improved in lockstep with the 10-year Note yield, which has also declined, though much more sharply, to a historic low of .66%. The reason — mortgage backed securities (MBS), where home loans are priced, carry a different risk profile than that of Treasuries. Investors in MBS are subject to refinance risk when rates go lower. To offset that risk, investors demand a premium within MBS which creates a higher price to both the lender and ultimately the homeowner.
  • Mortgage lenders are so busy they can hardly keep up with the business. What is one thing you don’t do when business is so busy? Lower price.

Bottom line: today represents a golden opportunity to lock on the best rates in the history of the U.S. and should be taken by those who can benefit.

If you or someone you know has questions about home loans, give me a call. I’d be happy to help.

Forecast for the Week:

Expecting More Volatility

The extreme volatility in the U.S. financial markets is likely to continue in the days ahead as the coronavirus headlines impact investor sentiment.

Economic reports are light, but we will see a key inflation report from the Consumer Price Index. Inflation has been subdued and will continue for the foreseeable future.

In this climate of uncertainty surrounding the spread of the coronavirus, mortgage rates are at historic lows and will likely remain low throughout 2020.

Weekly Initial Jobless Claims will garner some attention to gauge whether or not the job market is seeing any fallout from the coronavirus. It has not shown up yet. And last week, planned job cuts by U.S.-based employers declined in February from January, reports outplacement firm Challenger Gray & Christmas.

Reports to watch:

  • Inflation data will be seen from Wednesday’s Consumer Price Index and Thursday’s Producer Price Index.
  • Weekly Initial Jobless Claims will be released on Thursday with Consumer Sentiment being delivered on Friday.

The Mortgage Market Guide View:

Why Video Marketing is Good for Your Business

Video marketing is one of the best ways to generate awareness of your brand and boost your business. YouTube is the second-largest search engine in the world, boasting over a billion users who collectively watch more than 250 million hours of video every day. Your business videos could be part of those numbers, helping you to grow your audience and reach more people with your messaging.

Show them who you are. A video allows you to showcase your service or product in a visual way, which is more appealing to a wider audience than a text-based post. You can add subtitles to your videos to make sure that people can view them from anywhere at any time.

Keep it simple. When creating business videos, make sure to keep them professional, honest, and simple. They also shouldn’t be too long, as the length can impact whether people start and finish the videos. Also, making videos can be as simple as using the camera on your smartphone or a digital camera with built-in video capabilities.

Post it on social. Most real estate professionals use social media to connect with their current clients and reach new clients. You can use videos on these platforms by sharing content through your profile to reach your followers. If you have a website for your business, add the videos there as well. Videos are easy to share and can make a message go viral.

Additional benefits of video marketing include improved SEO rankings, better mobile responsiveness, and the ability to get a message out there quickly and effectively. Take advantage of the perks of video marketing for your business by creating new videos and sharing them with interested viewers.

Sources: Vidyard, Business2Community, ThriveHive

The material contained in this newsletter has been prepared by an independent third-party provider. The content is provided for use by real estate, financial services and other professionals only and is not intended for consumer distribution. The material provided is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as investment and/or mortgage advice. Although the material is deemed to be accurate and reliable, there is no guarantee it is without errors.As your mortgage professional, I am sending you the MMG WEEKLY because I am committed to keeping you updated on the economic events that impact interest rates and how they may affect you.Mortgage Market Guide, LLC is the copyright owner or licensee of the content and/or information in this email, unless otherwise indicated. Mortgage Market Guide, LLC does not grant to you a license to any content, features or materials in this email. You may not distribute, download, or save a copy of any of the content or screens except as otherwise provided in our Terms and Conditions of Membership, for any purpose.  

We are ready to help you find the best possible mortgage solution for your situation. Contact Sheila Siegel at Synergy Financial Group today.