Batteries! A Rate Rally? Bad Songs!

Battery Quote of the Day: “Batteries are the most dramatic object. Other things stop working or they break, but batteries… they die.” – Demetri Martin

Today in History: It was on this date in 1990 when Blues-rock legend Stevie Ray Vaughan died in a helicopter crash following a concert in Wisconsin. (*I never used to have a fear of helicopters until my wife and I took a volcano tour on our honeymoon in Hawaii. The helicopter looked old, the pilot was old, and I asked him if these ever crash. He said to me, “One crashed last year and killed four tourists.” He saw the look on my face and started to laugh and said, “I’m just messin’ with ya – it was only two tourists.”)

Possible Game Show Answer: Nepal is about 15 minutes ahead of India. Time zones are usually by the hour, but Nepal is UTC (+ 5:45) just to be different from its giant neighbor. (*When I was in 3^rd grade my sister told me Wisconsin was 10 minutes behind Illinois, I believed this until the 10^th grade when I lost a bet to my history teacher).

Wuss’up This Week: Every day reports about our economy are released into the wild, and it’s these reports that can sway interest rates in either direction. Not much today but tomorrow we have Jobless Claims and Pending Home Sales (expected: 0.3%), and tomorrow four inflation reports along with the Consumer Sentiment Report. As usual if these numbers come in good for the economy we’ll see rates tick up, and vice versa if the numbers disappoint.

Interest Rate Update: Last year at this time the average conforming 30yr fixed rate was 6.59%. Today the average is 6.625%. Further proof that the more things change the more they sort of stay the same. Keep in mind those are Fannie Mae averages which includes an average of 1 point being paid per transaction. Without points today we’re looking at 6.50%-6.99% for conforming loans (*$806k or less), and for jumbo 30yr fixed (*over $806k) they can be found in the high-6s. ARM rates are slightly less, but many carry prepayment penalties, so in my opinion it’s better to wait as refinance season is right around the corner. As usual rates will vary based on type of home, equity in the home, your credit score, and if you like the worst # 1 song ever

Don’t Forget to Remember: Any purchase loan that closes with me I will waive $450 in lender fees (*and much more on a refinance)! Grab yourself a cup of instant karma and pass my info along to any friends, family, coworkers, or people that like funny posts/memes that can use this gift.

Battery Quote of the Day 2: “People say that Steve Jobs died too soon, but I think it was a fitting metaphor for his company’s attitude towards battery life.” – Frankie Boyle

Timeout for Trivia: Congrats to those who guessed Amy Adams last week! Want to be entered into a drawing to win a Gibby Singing iCarly T-shirt? Simply email me the answer to this week's Who Am I? question. Good luck: “ It was on this date in 2013 when Robin Thicke’s Blurred Lines was keeping me from being the number # 1 song in the U.S. which makes me so angry I want to scream! Or if I was an animal what would be something similar to screaming? Do you think of me on July 4^th? Better question: Do you remember my 2011 song that is not about an alien stuck on earth but rather love that is so intoxicating it feels almost alien. I rose to fame with my 2008 album whose title had ‘boy’ in it, and the hit single – just the opposite. I guess that makes sense since my first name is female and last name male. Last hint: It’s Wednesday, only two more days until the weekend – what do they say on Fridays?? If you don’t know I guess you’ll have to watch the video that starred me, Rebecca Black, Corey Feldman, Kevin McHale, etc.”

The Adieu Mortgage Haiku:

Just like batteries

Interest rates are a C

Will be a B soon...