Mortgage Rates Waiting on the Federal Reserve

Posted To: Mortgage Rate Watch

Mortgage rates moved higher early Friday morning following a better than expected read on Retail Sales. However, as the day progressed, benchmark Treasury yields did move lower, helping mortgage-backed securities prices recover early session losses. Most lenders did not reprice for the better after these improvements though. After a slow week of economic data, the calendar picks up in the days ahead. Starting with manufacturing data this morning.... Each month, the New York Federal Reserve conducts a survey of approximately 175 manufacturing executives in New York State on the strength of business conditions. Readings above 0 indicate expanding or improving conditions while readings below 0 indicate contraction. This data has indicated steady improvements since August of 2009. The Empire State...(read more)

MBS CLOSE: Flat Day Reiterates Focus On FOMC

Posted To: MBS Commentary

In shocking twist of events, MBS end where they begin, with 4.5 at 100-29 "Huge" change in treasuries too with 10yr at 3.695 vs. 3.701 coming into the day (a whole 6 thousands) Stocks rally to close right at their best levels from Friday, but no higher. Stock lever didn't hurt bonds. Tomorrow AM data of low to moderate importance: Housing Starts at 830 expected at .565 mln vs .591 mln previously Import/Export Prices at 830 (previously .8% MoM and 3.4% YoY on exports and 1.4% MoM and 11.5% YoY on imports) Important stuff later in day with FOMC announcement at 215pm Did you know that MoM and YoY refer to "month over month" change and "year over year" change, respectively? We use that from time to time, as do others. And armed with that little bit of knowledge...(read more)

Ranking the Largest Banks by Assets; Warehouse Lending;...

Posted To: The Garrett Watts Report

With all the moving and shifting, here are the most recent numbers on the largest banks ranked by assets: A few others you know are: #12 U.S. Bancorp ($265 billion), #17 BB&T ($165 billion), #23 Fifth Third ($110 billion), #33 Comerica ($59 billion), #82 Sterling Financial, Spokane ($11.9 billion). Top bank research firm Keefe, Bruyette has identified 21 distinct periods of bank performance starting in the early 1960s. Outperformance periods averaged 34 months in length, during which bank stocks outperformed the market by an average of 20.8% annualized. The under-performance cycles averaged 23 months, during which bank stocks lagged the market by 20% per year, on average. Our view is that an outperformance for small cps banks is just around the corner. A good example of how much access...(read more)

Professional Standards

This Updated Field Guide provides quick links to essential information on NAR's 2010 Code of Ethics and Professional Standards Policy. Find out about the mandatory Code of Ethics training, Professional Standards Administrator training, and applying the Code of Ethics in real life. For a comprehensive listing of ethics and professional standards resources available from NAR, visit the Professional Standards/Code of Ethics page on Realtor.org.

Communication for Associations

In the world of association management, a key element to success is communication. Communicating includes how to deal effectively with staff or membership, or how to correctly transmit an e-mail message. The following resources help today's busy association executive better understand and achieve successful styles of communication.