Tuesday's bond market has opened in positive territory following a much weaker than expected consumer confidence reading. The stock markets are posting moderate gains again with the Dow up 17 points and the Nasdaq up 5 points. The bond market is currently up 8/32, which will likely improve this morning's mortgage rates by approximately .125 of a discount point.

The Conference Board posted their Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) for September late this morning, showing a reading of 99.8. This was much lower than the 104.5 that was expected and was the lowest reading since November 2005. That indicates that consumers were far less confident in their own financial situations than many had thought. This is good news for the bond market and mortgage rates because waning confidence usually translates into weaker levels of consumer spending.

The National Association of Realtors reported that home resales fell 4.3% last month, which was close to forecasts. This was the sixth consecutive monthly drop in sales, indicating that that the housing sector continues to weaken. However, this data is not considered to be highly important to mortgage bonds, therefore, its results have failed to influence rates this morning.

August's Durable Goods Orders will be posted early tomorrow morning. This report gives us an indication of manufacturing sector strength by tracking orders for big-ticket items at U.S. factories. Current forecasts call for a drop in orders in the neighborhood of 3.5%. A larger decline could help bond prices and cause mortgage rates to drop tomorrow. However, a smaller than expected decrease would indicate a stronger than expected manufacturing sector that would likely help push mortgage rates higher Wednesday.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now... This is only my opinion of what I would do if I were financing a home. It is only an opinion and cannot be guaranteed to be in the best interest of all/any other borrowers.

Please let me know if I can provide loan information for any of your clients. I would be happy to quickly pre-qualify them, provide loan scenarios, or help improve their credit position to obtain a lower interest rate.

I am here to provide you and your clients with exceptional service in a courteous and respectful manner.

Paul Lefton