Not all, but many, capital markets folks spent their college years rolling up their sleeves. Some not so much. When originators are asked about interest rates, some LOs may use the line in the clip above: “Oh, man. I only ride them; I don't know what makes them work.” (The current STRATMOR blog is titled, “Relying on the Fed: How Did This Happen?”) Yesterday the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee (FOMC) grabbed the headlines, despite doing exactly what everybody expected them to do: leave rates unchanged. Inflation is still higher than the FOMC would like. Certainly, insurance costs, whether they be homeowner or car, are inflationary. It would be foolish to blame the Biden Administration, or any administration, for things like insurance costs, ships running aground in the Suez Canal, a drought in Africa, or what OPEC does. Such is life, and one needs to ask how much more government interference we need or want. In my opinion, a president consultin
“What do you call a gal who’s had too much to drink? A cab.” Of course, anyone who’s been drinking should stay away from California’s 40-foot waves. Drinking too much has its consequences, either when you’re doing it or the next day, and under the “Big Brother marches on at the expense of privacy” heading, in Brazil, Burger King says it's doling out "Hangover Whoppers," using facial recognition to determine whether you had too much to drink last night. Technology has strange offshoots. Google, thought to be tech but actually the world’s largest advertising company, owns the majority stake in Nevada’s Burning Man, held around Labor Day. There are strange things that have nothing to do with technology, of course, like the ownership of Napolean’s “staff of life.” (See how I slipped this in when everyone’s on vacation?) Today’s podcast can be found here, and th
As the rumor spreads that millions of women are lined up to be weighed at the Fulton County Jail, we head into late summer and early autumn, rarely a time for increased home sale activity. The National Association of REALTORS®' total membership in July 2023 is 1.56 million. There are about 547k active listings. That’s one listing per three NAR members, which doesn’t even include non-NAR real estate agents. Analysts continue to point to the nationwide housing market struggling with low inventory levels and decreased affordability. While active inventory through the first six months of 2023 was higher than the record lows set in 2022, new listings have been lagging below 2022 levels. Just simply not enough homes? But Hawai’i’s Marcelle Loren writes, “I don’t agree with the reports of a lack of inventory. There’s just a lack of agents digging up properties to sell. For example, the death of Baby Boomers is a source of inven
Companies like Guild Mortgage, Union Home Mortgage, American Pacific Mortgage and Go Mortgage have been expanding their footprint during a time of great upheaval.