The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury fell to 2.57% Wednesday -- compared to just under 3% last week – as stocks plunged in both the U.S. and overseas markets.
A decline in yield on the 10-year typically leads to mortgage rates falling. And according to interviews with residential finance officials it appears that application volumes may soon be on the upswing. (See related story on applications on the National Mortgage News website.)
Glenn Corso, managing director of the Community Mortgage Banking Project, a small trade group said, said he anticipates refinancings picking up steam. “We’ve been hearing rates of 4.25% + 1/2 pt and at 4.5% a borrower can get 1 to 1-1/4 pts premium towards their closing costs,” he said.
On Wednesday morning, for example, Quicken Home Loans was offering a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with just 0.25 points at 4.44% (APR).
Marc Savitt, president of The Mortgage Center, Martinsburg, W. Va., said lower rates are spurring phone calls about refinancings at his shop, but quipped, “However, the appraisals are still a gamble.”
