Since the rock-bottom historic low refinance mortgage rates of November of last year, rates have been slowly edging their way up to mirror the movement of the 10-Yr Treasury yield. The yield actually increased over 1.0% in the time-span between November and the beginning part of February 2011.
Yet, even at the high point of refinance mortgage rates so far in 2011, historically speaking, they were still at awesome levels. We have, in the past week, experienced a nice dip back down in interest rates by an average of one-quarter point and the average 30-Year Fixed Rates are now hovering solidly under 5.0% once again.
The reason for the recent fall in refinance mortgage rates can be attributed to the recent global unrest in Egypt and Libya along with other global issues. The unrest is leading another investor flight to quality in US bonds and driving the yield down.
How long this dip in rates will last is anyone’s guess, but there could be another anti-bond factor working in the background…. Inflation. Oil prices have surged recently and fuel costs seem determined to match or beat their all-time highs. One would guess that the US corporations have sucked every last ounce of labor-savings out of the workforce by this point as well. These two factors, combined with the Fed’s money printing factory may lead to a bout of significant inflation. This is not good for the economy or for refinance mortgage rates.
There have also been some rumblings from the Fed that they may put an end to the $600 billion bond-buying program. Again, this would not be a good sign for refinance mortgage rates.
Refinance mortgage program offerings have not laxed yet, but the Fannie Mae DU Refi Plus program is still available. This program is essentially a streamline refinance that is a huge help for those that do not currently have private mortgage insurance on their mortgage and also have had a decline in home value, creating a loan-to-value refinancing scenario that is over 80%. For those eligible, you can refinance into the great current refinance rates and will not have PMI attached to your loan. Also, in many instances, one will not need to have a home appraisal done.
FHA refinance loans can also be a good option in today’s market, although one might want to act fast. The FHA required monthly mortgage insurance (PMI) is set to increase in April of this year.
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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