A bad Apple helps home loan rates

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Jeffrey Loyd Mortgage Loan Officer Phone: +1 212 243-0373 Fax +1 347 686-6406 NMLS #:: 410097 jloyd@unfcu.com www.unfcu.org/JeffreyL
In This Issue Last Week in Review: Apple, Congress negate solid jobs numbers Forecast for the Week: Fed not hiking rates soon View: Tips for cutting out distractions Last Week in Review "Workin' for a Livin"...Huey Lewis and the News I-Phone maker, Apple, was a downer this week as the company announced a surprise weak sales and earnings forecast for the first quarter of 2019. Stocks and interest rates fell on the bad news, concerned that Apple, the first big tech firm to report weak growth in 2019, is the "canary in the coalmine" and that more companies will report weaker sales and earnings. Regardless of Apple's current woes, the U.S. economy is still humming along as was evident in Friday's Jobs Report which showed an "eye-popping" 312,000 jobs created in December. Adding to the good news in the Jobs Report was a 3.2% hike in wage gains year over year - the highest level in a decade. Remember, jobs buy houses, not rates, so the positive jobs numbers and wage growth are great for housing. But while we are on the subject of rates, the "bad Apple" news helped rates improve again this week to the lowest levels in nearly a year. Rates have been steadily improving since early November. What happened in early November? Congress became divided. Bonds and home loan rates love uncertainty, chaos, stalemates and bad news - Congress can provide plenty of it from time to time. If you or someone you know has questions about home loans, give me a call. I'd be happy to help. Forecast for the Week It will be back-to-business this week for the first full workweek of 2019 after the two-previous holiday shortened weeks. The closely watched Consumer Price Index for December will be released with the Fed keeping close eyes on the inflation reading ahead of the January 30th Fed Meeting. Speaking of the Fed - as of right now, financial markets are pricing in a 91% probability the Fed Funds Rate will be unchanged in 2019 - meaning no more rate hikes this year. The U.S. government may be enduring a partial shutdown, but that doesn't stop them from borrowing money to run our country and this coming week the U.S. Treasury will sell $78B worth of Bonds in that effort. With rates and bond yields at the lowest levels in a year, it will be interesting to see the investor appetite at these Treasury auctions. If investors demand more yield at the auctions, expect rates, including home loan rates, to tick higher. Reports to watch: The ISM Service Index will be released on Monday. Weekly Initial Jobless Claims will be announced on Thursday. On Friday, the Consumer Price Index will be released. Chart: Fannie Mae 4.0% Mortgage Bond (Friday, January 4, 2019) The Mortgage Market Guide View... Tip: Staying Motivated - How to Cut Out Common Distractions Staying motivated can be one of the most difficult challenges in the real estate industry you may face. While having established goals and a clear future path are integral components of staying motivated, another crucial component is being able to cut out common distractions. Silence non-work related notifications. One of the first steps toward eliminating distractions is silencing unnecessary communication tools. While your cell phone and emails are critical to your job, personal email, social media notifications, and other non-work-related smart-device notifications can result in short periods of distractions that account for a lot of wasted time. Shut off all notifications that aren't critical to your work functions. Eliminate focusing on the clock. Being obsessed with time can not only cause an unnecessary distraction but also cause anxiety and, in turn, make you less productive. Simply remove clocks that are in your line of sight. You can make sure you stay on top of appointments by setting reminders on your computer and phone. Socialize during designated break times. Avoid the distraction of co-worker interruption by reserving your socializing and conversations for designated break times. When focused on a project or any work that requires extreme focus, put up a "do not disturb" sign on your desk or door. This can let your co-workers know that you can only be interrupted for work-related matters. If co-worker distraction breaks your concentration easily, schedule more focused tasks for times when fewer people are in the office. By reducing co-worker interruptions and keeping your focus off your electronics and on the task at hand, you can eliminate some of the most common distractions and achieve your daily work goals. Source: CIPHR Economic Calendar for the Week of January 07 - January 11 Date ET Economic Report For Estimate Actual Prior Impact Mon. January 07 01:00 ISM Services Index Dec NA 60.7 Moderate Wed. January 09 14:00 FOMC Minutes Dec NA NA HIGH Thu. January 10 08:30 Jobless Claims (Initial) 1/05 NA NA Moderate Fri. January 11 08:30 Consumer Price Index (CPI) Dec NA 0.0% HIGH Fri. January 11 08:30 Core Consumer Price Index (CPI) Dec NA 0.2% HIGH This credit union is federally insured by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA). Accounts and shares are insured by the Administration to the maximum insurance amount for each member or shareholder. Unless otherwise noted, fees may be associated with certain products and services. Certain UNFCU products and services are subject to approval. Federal and state laws may limit the availability of certain products and services in select areas. UNFCU is a registered mark of the United Nations Federal Credit Union. The material contained in this newsletter has been prepared by an independent third-party provider. 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