Holden LewisAssistant managing editor, Bankrate.comMortgage rates have been rising slowly in the last couple of weeks, and I expect the trend to continue.
Kevin BreelandGeneral manager, Residential Mortgage of South Carolina, Mount Pleasant, S.C.The Fed said inflation is tame and they will keep rates low for a substantial time. It is beginning to appear a market adjustment is taking place. I expect rates to be higher this next week by one-eighth of 1 percentage point.
Derek EgebergCertified Mortgage Planning Specialist and branch manager, Academy Mortgage, Yuma, Ariz.The trend line indicates a continued slide toward higher rates. If you have not locked your purchase or refinance loan yet, safety is the better way to go.
Dan GreenWaterstone Mortgage, author of TheMortgageReports.com, CincinnatiWith Greece getting settled, markets give back some gains.
David KuiperMortgage planner, First Place Bank, Holland, Mich.We've seen mortgage interest rates give up a little bit of the gains we've experienced over the past couple of weeks. News of a possible "solution" for the Greek debt crisis and some poor bond auctions led to a sell-off in mortgage bonds. I think we'll continue to see volatility in the week ahead. Interest rates remain very favorable, and if you're "in the mood" to buy, build or refinance, it remains an opportune time to do so. It just doesn't make sense to try to time the market.
Dick LepreSenior loan officer, RPM Mortgage, San FranciscoWhile just last week the techs looked bullish, they have this week been crushed by selling. What I find strange is that there are no fundamentals to support that selling. The daily tech, which had long resisted a down cycle (lower prices, higher rates), has succumbed and is about to take the weekly with it. If the Greek debt thing becomes unhinged, we will see flight-to-quality Treasury buying.
Rebecca R. MadejMortgage consultant, Cunningham & Company Mortgage Bankers, Charlotte, N.C.With fewer fears on Greek debt and more concerns about our own, rates will rise.
Joe NunziataChairman and co-CEO, FBC Mortgage, Orlando, Fla.We believe mortgage rates may increase slightly week-over-week as the bond market appears to be deteriorating with yesterday's sluggish two-year auction results by the Treasury department.
Mitch OhlbaumVice president of business development, Mortgage Capital Associates, Los AngelesFor the first time in weeks, we now see the 10-year Treasury trading at 3.08 percent, well above the critical 3 percent mark I have been talking about. The push down we saw in rates over the last few weeks came from investors trading positions in stocks for bonds, and now we are seeing the opposite happen. With anemic economic news at home and weakness in some European countries, especially Greece, we will assuredly see rates come back down -- but it will take a few weeks.
John WalshPresident, Total Mortgage Services, Milford, Conn.After one economic calamity was avoided with the passage of the Greek austerity package, attention now turns to the U.S. The expiration of quantitative easing and the impending debt ceiling deadline on Aug. 2 now become the drivers of mortgage rates. Loss of a major buyer of U.S. Treasuries cannot be good for mortgage rates based on basic supply and demand economics. Moreover, the fact that a debt ceiling increase deal is not likely until the last minute will add to upward pressure for mortgage rates.