Dog Quote of the Day: “You want a friend in Washington? Get a dog.” – Harry Truman
Today in Economic History: It was on this day in 1933, President Franklin Roosevelt ended the first week of his famed ‘First 100 Days’ by submitting the Emergency Banking Act to Congress. At this point of the blog, you’re thinking, “Should I start my workday or read 10 interesting facts about FDR?”
Wuss’up This Week: It’s a pretty quiet week for economic reports that can sway interest rates. Today we’ve got the Job Openings Report (expected: 11 million; previous: 10.9 million), tomorrow’s jobless claims, the Core CPI report (*this is a measurement of inflation that shows the price change of goods and services minus food and energy), and the Federal Budget Deficit (*last month this was at -$311 billion. Suddenly I’m not feeling so bad about my Visa card balance), and on Friday the U of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Report, this is a report of how willing consumers are to spend money (*see my last joke about my Visa card and you’ll know this will probably come in higher than expected).
Interest Rate Update: Today we find a conforming 30-year fixed-rate at anywhere from 3.875% – 4.375% and jumbo 30-year fixed rates (*over $647k) also in that range. The best bang for your buck is still ARM products – these are ranging from the low-to-mid-to-upper 3s. As usual, rates will vary based on if it’s a purchase or refinance, type of home, equity in the home, your credit score, and if you like creepy photographs.
Don’t Forget to Remember: Any purchase or refinance that closes with me I will waive $575 in lender fees! Grab yourself a cup of instant karma and pass my info along to any friends, family, coworkers, co-slackers, or people that bought great thrift store finds.
Timeout for Trivia: Congrats to those who guessed Rebel Wilson last week. Want to be entered into a drawing to win a Batmen Watching Movie Poster? Simply email me the answer to this week’s Who Am I? question. Good luck: “It was on this date in 1999 my movie was # 1 in the country; it was a movie about therapy, and the funny thing was an identical storyline played out on a very successful cable series just two months before, capeesh? Are you a fan of 80s music? The band Bananarama wrote a song about me that hit # 3 in the UK but barely broke the Top 100 here in the states. Speaking of different countries, you won’t be able to get much in Spain or Mexico without my last name. An anagram for my name is ‘Nerdier Robot’, and let me tell you from my movies, you’ve never seen me play a nerd because no one would believe it, and my acting is un-robotic – I’ve been nominated for 8 Academy Awards, so I think it’s safe to say people are going to the theater to hear what I have to say, which is good because do you think I really want to hear you talking to me?”
