Weekly Mortgage Rate Trend Index

Weekly Mortgage Trend Index

Treasury Yields

ARM Indices

Mortgage Trend

The Mortgage Trend Index is 6407. This means that the national 30 year fixed rate mortgage is sitting at an average of 6.407%

• Existing home sales dropped 8.4% in March, the largest one month drop in 18 years.
• Consumer Confidence slips as gas prices rise.
• Bond markets are mixed.

Bottom?

The pace of existing home sales is the lowest since June 2003. The decline between a February number that was itself revised lower and March's number is the largest since 1989. While sales ended the first quarter up from the last quarter of 2006 the late drop isn't a good sign. David Lereah, the National Association of Realtors® chief economist, said weather and, perhaps, the subprime mortgage crunch caught up with the market as many predicted.

Prices are holding surprisingly with at least nationwide statistics showing that median prices were flat in March against a year ago. Price data across the first quater show weaker prices than the first quarter in 2006. Pressure will remain on prices, housing economist Celia Chen writes today, because the inventory of homes for sale is bloated at 7.3 months supply. Thats substantially higher than the 5.6-months supply on the market at this time last year.

The Conference Board reported a drop as expected in the Consumer Confidence Index. Consumer assessments of current conditions and expectations both slipped. Another surge in gas prices underlies flagging consumer confidence.

Markets did not react much to the housing news but Treasury prices saw a modest surge on the weak consumer confidence report. Stock markets were mixed at mid-morning.