Pending Home Sales Rise as Treasury Yields Rise

Yesterday’s pending home sales report was a welcome good bit of news for the ailing US housing market. The National Association of Realtors said Monday its seasonally adjusted index of sales agreements rose 8.2 percent from January to a February reading of 97.6. The surge in sales was unexpected, but very welcome.

Hopefully, this will be a good sign for housing going in to the spring as home buyers rush to take advantage of the government tax credit and low mortgage rates before they rise.

I think the real test of the housing market will come in the second half of the year when the homebuyer tax credit is off the table. The expired tax credit, coupled with the potential for home mortgage rates to go up could set up for another round of the housing market blues, but you never know what the government has planned to help prop up the sales in real estate.

The yield on the 10-Year Treasury briefly flirted with 4.0 percent yesterday. As a key component of refinance mortgage rates, a close above 4.0 percent could be a bad sign for rates. Money continues to flow into the stock market and away from bonds as the economy moves toward stabilization.

Depending upon whom you talk to, some believe the stock market is headed for another major dip as the government stimulus programs are lifted from the market. Others feel that we will stabilize in the equities markets and continue on an upward trend.

As this relates to mortgage refinance rates, if the economy continues to improve and home prices continue to fall, we could experience a rather healthy bump up in interest rates.

For those homeowners still considering a home refinance, there is a much higher risk of rate movement to the upside than to the downside. As always, just make sure to get a good grasp on the current market value of your home before rate shopping. Also make sure to get a solid refinance pre-qualification once you begin to get quotes.

If you are considering a home mortgage refinance now and need some help, have questions, or need some competitive refinance rate quotes, please check out the popular Refinance Tool Box. Just give a call at 888-850-9888 or fill out a Rate Quote Request online for professional assistance without the aggressive high-pressure sales tactics.

May the Mortgage Refinance Rates be with You!

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