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Fed Funds Rate | Market Composite Index | Valentines Day

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Mortgage and Lending with Benchmark Home Loans 173024

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen is on Capitol Hill today giving testimony on monetary policy in front of the House Financial Services Committee. Ms. Yellen expects the economy to warrant only a gradual rise in the short-term Fed Funds Rate as some financial strains weigh on the current outlook. The Fed Funds Rate is the interest at which a depository institution lends funds maintained at the Federal Reserve to another depository institution overnight. The higher the Fed Funds Rate, the more expensive it is to borrow money.

Low mortgage rates fueled a jump in mortgage application volume in the latest week. The Mortgage Bankers Association reports that its Market Composite Index, a measure of total loan application volume, increased 9.3% for the week ending February 5, 2016. The refinance index jumped 16%, while the purchase index was essentially unchanged. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($417,000 or less) fell to its lowest level since April 2015, 3.91%, from 3.97%, with points unchanged at 0.41.

On the lighter side, with Valentine's Day fast approaching, here are a few facts to chew on. About 1 billion Valentine's Day cards are exchanged in the U.S. each year, just behind Christmas. More than 36 million heart-shaped boxes of chocolates are sold for Valentine's Day each year. As far as giving flowers, 73% of people who buy flowers for Valentine's Day are men, while only 27% are women. Worldwide, over 50 million roses are given for Valentine's Day each year. In 2015, $18.9 billion was spent on Valentine's Day gifts.

Posted by

Steve Reed

Benchmark Home Loans

Branch Manager

NMLS #173024

Ark-La-Tex Financial Services, LLC NMLS #2143 

4138 Bristol Highway, Suite #4

Johnson City, TN 37601

Phone 423-232-0111

steve.reed@benchmark.us

www.stevereed.benchmark.us

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Comments (2)

Cindy Edwards
RE/MAX Checkmate - Johnson City, TN
CRS, GRI, PMN - Northeast Tennessee 423-677-6677

Always great information Steve!  Thanks for lunch today!

Feb 10, 2016 04:08 AM
Steve Reed
Benchmark Home Loans - Johnson City, TN
Steve Reed Branch Manager | Benchmark Home Loans

Thanks Cindy Edwards!  My pleasure!

Feb 12, 2016 04:26 AM