Last week’s economic reports included new home sales, pending home sales along with weekly mortgage rates and new jobless claims.
What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – May 23, 2016
Last week’s economic news included the NAHB Housing Market Index, reports on housing starts, building reports and existing home sales. Minutes of the Federal Reserve’s last FOMC meeting were also released.
How Are Mortgage Rates Determined?
If you’ve been paying attention to the mortgage rate news, you may be wondering exactly how it is banks decide what mortgage rates to offer. Do they just pick a number at random? Mortgage rates may seem somewhat arbitrary, but there’s actually something of a science to them.
So how does your bank or lender determine what your interest rate will be? Here are just some of the factors that go into the equation.
NAHB: Home Builder Confidence Holds Steady in May
The National Association of Home Builders reported that home builder confidence in the U.S. housing market conditions held steady for the fourth consecutive month in May. Builder confidence stayed at a reading of 58, which was the number expected by analysts and was also the reading for April. Analysts said that the consistency in readings signified expansion in housing markets. Any reading over 50 indicates that more builders than not are confident about market conditions.
