Hi, Mortgage Fans!
Proof Quote of the Day: “For those who believe, no proof is necessary. For those who don’t believe, no proof is possible.” – Stuart Chase (*There are exceptions to this quote. Back in high school, when after failing Spanish the entire semester, I got an A on the final. Senorita Lopez accused me of copying off of the student who sat next to me. I remember raising my voice, like Jack Nicholson in A Few Good Men, and shouted, “You have no proof; show me proof!” She then made me take the test again in the room by myself and got herself all the proof she ever needed.)
This Week in Economic History: It was on this day in 1877 when Cornelius Vanderbilt, a leader in the shipping industry, died with an estimated net worth of $100 million, making him, at the time, the wealthiest man in the United States. (*On this day, that also made him the wealthiest dead person in the United States. Give it away, man! Recently Amazon founder Jeff Bezos announced he would give away most of his fortune, which he should. Did you know that by the time you’re done reading this blog, he will have made $150,000? That totals $9 million an hour and $216 million per day.)
Possible Game Show Answer: Over her sixty-three-year reign, Queen Victoria survived eight assassination attempts.
Wuss’up This Week: Every day, reports about our economy are released into the wild, and these reports can sway interest rates in either direction. Today we’ve got the FOMC minutes, tomorrow the ADP Employment Report, and Friday’s biggie, the Employment Numbers for December (expected: 180k new jobs, unemployment rate to stay at 3.7%). If these numbers come in better than expected, we’ll see rates tick up, and vice versa if the numbers disappoint.
Interest Rate Update: Today, we find a conforming 30yr fixed (*that’s for any loan at $726k or less) at around 6.50%, and jumbo 30yr fixed rates (*over $726k) anywhere from the low-6s all the way to the upper-6s. As usual, rates will vary based on credit score, type of home, equity in the home, and if your home is uh… unusual.
Don’t Forget to Remember: For any purchase or refinance loan that closes with me, I will waive the appraisal fee! Grab yourself a cup of instant karma and pass my info along to any friends, family, coworkers, or people that like lost 20th-century pics that can use this gift!
Proof Quote of the Day 2: “Proof that we don’t understand death is that we give dead people a pillow.” Jerry Seinfeld
Timeout for Trivia: Congrats to those who, on December 21, guessed Pete Davidson again from my last blog. (Just keeping you on your toes, Mortgage Fans!)
Want to be entered into a drawing to win a 1980s Cereal Mug? Simply email me the answer to this week’s Who Am I? question.
Good luck: “It was on this date in 2008 when my talk show premiered. An anagram for my name is ‘Facial Hazing Saki’. Well, I don’t know about those first two words, but I do like alcohol – do you remember – because I don’t – my 2009 movie where one of my two costars was a guy who made a movie with a lady in 2018. I also had a 2010 road trip movie with a guy who clearly doesn’t have an iron deficiency. Getting back to my talk show, it could also have been called ‘Plant Sandwich’.”
