Tuesday 9/30 ... Still waiting..

Today brought us the release of a couple economic reports and just like other reports we have recieved over the last couple weeks, nobody cares.

First, we had the release of the Chicago PMI which came in at 56.7. This is down slightly from last month but well within concensus estimates. Next came the release of consumer confidence which came in above estimates and higher then the prior month at 59.8. It will be interesting to see where this report comes in next month due to the present rescue bill and our current situation.

It appears we are going to continue are trip sideways in rates. After a disappointing House vote yesterday that resulted in no passage of the rescue bill, we will continue our pause mode with very little movement in rates. Until Congress can put aside their party politics and put the American citizens first, it appears this trend will continue and MBS will trade in a narrow range formed since the bailout a couple weeks ago of Fannie and Freddie. In related news, the Case Shiller home price index showed that month over month home values dropped .88% and year over year there has been a decline of 16.35%. Remember, real estate is all about location. Not every home in America has lost value and there are still many areas of the country that property values are inching up or worst case staying flat. Areas such as California and Florida have experienced bigger price declines where as areas such as Texas has experience very little if any decline.

As always, for a more technical anaylsis you can click the link at the top of the page for the professional blog which is intended for mortgage professionals. In that blog, more technical jargon is used and the average consumer may find it a bit overwhelming.