FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS REFERRAL PROGRAM

This one comes from Hiram Martinez, one one of our neighbors in Boca Springs.

Hello family and friends. I hope all is well for you despite these difficult economic times. In case you or you know someone who plans to shop for a new car and is considering a Toyota, my company is offering a referral program of $400 after you negotiate a purchase at the dealership. Feel free to contact me if interested. Thank you and please stay in touch.

Hiram Martinez

561-488-2170

FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS REFERRAL PROGRAM

When associates refer a friend or neighbor to any Southeast Toyota (Florida, Georgia, Carolinas, Alabama) dealer resulting in a purchase and delivery of a new Toyota or Scion between 12/02/08 and 1/02/09, that friend or neighbor will receive $400!

 Monday, December 22, 2008

On Monday, December 15, it was announced that the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo housing market index remained at a record low of 9 in December. That is the same reading for the previous month of November. An index reading higher than 50 indicates positive sentiment about the housing market.

The Federal Reserve reported that industrial activity fell by 0.6% in November. Economists had expected a decline of 0.8%.

The Labor Department reported Tuesday that consumer prices fell 1.7% in November — the largest decrease since record keeping began in 1947. The report reflected a steep fall in energy costs, which dropped 17% in November, following an 8.6% decline in October.

On Tuesday, the Fed cut its key interest rate to a range of zero to 0.25%. This brings the interest rate that banks charge each other to the lowest level on record.

The Commerce Department said construction of new homes fell in November by 18.9%, the biggest drop in 25 years. The decline pushed construction down to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 625,000 homes, the slowest pace on records dating to 1959.

The Conference Board reported Thursday that its index of leading economic indicators fell for the second straight month, dropping 0.4% in November. That was slightly better than the 0.5% decline economists had expected. The index is designed to forecast economic activity in the next three to six months.

Upcoming on the economic calendar are reports on existing home sales and new home sales on December 23, and durable goods orders on December 24.

Wednesday's bond market has opened up sharply as investors continue yesterday's late rally. The stock markets are showing losses with the Dow down 114 points and the Nasdaq down 20 points. The bond market is currently up 45/32, which will likely improve this morning's mortgage rates nearly a full percentage point in rate compared to yesterday's morning rates.

Yesterday's FOMC meeting yielded a .750 cut to key short-term interest rates to bring the Fed Funds rate down to a record low of .250%. That, along with the post meeting statement, led to a huge rally in bonds and stocks late yesterday. While the stock markets are giving back some of those gains, bonds have built on top of them. However, it is difficult to see where bonds may be able to improve much more before pulling back. Accordingly, I would proceed cautiously if you have not locked and interest rate yet.

There is no relevant economic news scheduled for release today, so there is no data to drive bonds prices higher than current levels. With stocks in negative ground, bonds may appear more attractive to investors, at least short-term. But, I would not be surprised to see some profit-taking in bonds to capture the gains from the recent rally. If this is the case, we may see mortgage rates revise a little higher during afternoon trading.

Tomorrow morning brings us the release of weekly unemployment figures from the Labor Department. This data is not usually of much importance to the markets because it tracks only a week's worth of new claims. However, the second report of the day is only moderately important so if this data varies greatly from forecasts it could influence bonds enough to affect mortgage pricing. It is expected to show that 558,000 new claims for benefits were filed last week.

The week's last piece of economic news will be posted tomorrow morning with the release of the Conference Board's Leading Economic Indicat ors (LEI) for the month of November. This 10:00 AM release attempts to measure economic activity over the next three to six months. It is expected to show a sizable decline in activity, meaning that it predicts slower economic activity over the next several months. This probably will not have much of an impact on bond prices or affect mortgage rates unless it exceeds current forecasts of a 0.5% decline from October's reading. If it shows a larger decline, the bond market may move slightly higher, improving mortgage rates slightly.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now... This is only my opinion of what I would do if I were financing a home. It is only an opinion and cannot be guaranteed to be in the best int erest of all/any other borrowers.

INTEREST RATES ARE GETTING THE LOWEST IN 40 YEARS.

IT S PERFECT TIME TO REFINANCE. DON’T WAIT ANOTHER DAY!


30 Yrs Fixed Conforming @ 4.875%

30 Yrs Fixed FHA @ 5.000%

30 Yrs Fixed FHA Buydown @ 3.000% ( there is a fee involved)

30 Yrs Fixed / 203K Renovation Loans @ 6.000% ( bank/lender is giving you money for improvements or renovation). Only for Primary Residence.

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