What's Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week: April 1st, 2013

01.04.13 03:30 PM By Paul Cantor

What's Ahead For Mortgage Rates April 1st 2013European Market Jitters Continue To Affect The US Economy Mortgage rates fell last week as investor concerns over the European economy grew.  Fears of growing differences between wealthier European nations and European nations needing economic aid brought higher bond prices and lower mortgage rates. Positive news for Cyprus came when an agreement for an EU bailout was reached, but strict terms indicate that Germany and other nations are growing less enthusiastic about bailing out the banks of EU nations with shaky economies. Meanwhile, the Italian government has not been able to agree on a coalition government, which reduces the chances for economic reform in the EU's third largest country. European trade with the U.S. could fall as the result of the EU's ongoing economic challenges; this in turn would likely reduce U.S. inflation, which is good for lower mortgage rates. Last Week's Economic News Quiet, No Major Surprises.  Low inflation could also prolong the Fed's commitment to its quantitative easing program that is designed to keep long term interest rates, including mortgage rates, lower. This week, the European Central Bank (ECB) meeting scheduled for Thursday and monthly Employment Data set for release Friday are among anticipated economic news events.
DateTime (ET)StatisticForMarket Expects
04/01/1310:00:00 AMISM IndexMar54
04/01/1310:00:00 AMConstruction SpendingFeb0.90%
04/02/1310:00:00 AMFactory OrdersFeb2.50%
04/03/1308:15:00 AMADP Employment ChangeMar197K
04/04/1308:30:00 AMInitial Claims03/30/13343K
04/05/1308:30:00 AMUnemployment RateMar7.70%
04/05/1308:30:00 AMTrade BalanceFeb-$44.6B
04/05/1303:00:00 PMConsumer CreditFeb$12.9B
Now is a great time purchase real estate or refinance, taking advantage of historic low mortgage rates, while avoiding any future interest rate volatility.