China Shocker Sends Rates Back to High 3’s; Foreclosure Picture Improving; Sparse Listings Fuel Prices

China Shocker Sends Rates Back to High 3’s; Foreclosure Picture Improving; Sparse Listings Fuel Prices

Mortgage rates dropped quickly today, bringing many lenders back to quoting conventional 30yr fixed rates of 3.875% for top tier scenarios. The motivation came from China. What's up with that? It is not at all common to see China mentioned as a source of low mortgage rates in the US. It is more common for China to be mentioned as a part of big global economic picture, and it's that big picture that brought mortgage rates along for the ride today. The big picture took cues from the fact that China moved to substantially devalue its currency. On the surface, we might wonder why cheaper goods coming out of China would be a bad thing for the global economy, but the effect on international trade wasn't the market's primary concern today. Rather, it was the underlying message that China is concerned