Mortgage Rates Rebound by Scott Davis
After falling steadily since mid-May, it appears long term mortgage rates are on the rebound. According to Bank Rate Monitor, the 30-year fixed rate peaked at 8.38% on May 19 and fell to a two month low of 7.80% last Friday. By Wednesday, however, the 30-year rate had jumped to 7.89%. The 15-year fixed rate rose to 7.62%, while the one year adjustable and 30-year jumbo rates were at 7.15% and 8.27% respectively. Treasury bond yields, which normally move ahead of mortgage rates, have been climbing since the first of July. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note closed at 6.14% on Wednesday, well above the 5.96% level where it started the month. The 30-year bond yield stood at 5.90%. Stocks took another hit on Wednesday despite mostly positive earnings reports. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 43.84 points to 10,696.08 while the Nasdaq tumbled 121.54 to 4,055.63. After a higher than expected Consumer Price Index for June of 0.6%, the markets have started bracing for the possibility of another Fed interest rate hike in August. Selected Stocks - Closing Prices Wednesday, July 19 | Company | Ticker | Price | Change | HomeStore.com
| HOMS
| 30 3/4
| + 5/8
| HomeSeekers.com
| HMSK
| 2 17/32 | - 1/32
| Cendant
| CD
| 14 1/4
| + 1/2
| Homeservices.com
| HMSV
| 11 1/4
| - 1/16
| Realco, Inc.
| RLCO
| 1 15/16
| unch.
| Kennedy-Wilson
| KWIC
| 5 3/4
| + 3/16
| E-Loan
| EELN
| 4 7/16
| - 1/16
| LendingTree
| TREE
| 9 3/8
| + 3/8
| Countrywide
| CCR
| 35 3/8
| + 5/16
| Vista Info
| VINF
| 2 1/8
| + 7/32
| Internet Pictures Corp.
| IPIX
| 14 1/2
| - 1
| Champion Enterprises
| CHB
| 5 3/16
| + 1/8
| Centex Corp.
| CTX
| 22 9/16
| - 1/4
| Pulte Corp.
| PHM
| 21 9/16
| + 1/16
|
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