Market Trends - US mortgage applications to buy a home surged to the highest level since early 2023 [1] Financial Implications - Surge occurred despite still-elevated borrowing costs [1]

Mortgage Rate Trends - The average rate on the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage for conforming loans increased to 646% from 634% last week [1] - Mortgage rates haven't moved at all to start this week [4] Refinance Market - Applications to refinance a home loan dropped 21% last week from the previous week [2] - The drop in refies also came even though mortgage rates were 32 basis points higher last week than they were at the same time a year ago [2] - The average loan size for refies dropped substantially because of course higher rates eliminate that incentive for people with the bigger loans [3] Home Purchase Market - Applications for a mortgage to buy a home also fell but just 1% for the week [3] - Applications for a mortgage to buy a home were still 16% higher than the same week one year ago [3] Economic Factors - The expectation was that rates could move more decidedly on Friday when the monthly employment report was set for release [4] - The government shutdown now has all that in limbo [4]

Personnel Changes at the Federal Reserve - The report indicates potential changes in the Federal Reserve leadership, with Trump stating his intention to remove Fed governor Lisa Cook [1] - The stated reason for the potential removal is allegations of fraudulent information on mortgage applications [1]

All right. So, folks, you may not care about the Federal Reserve or interest rates, but you may want to buy a home. And what the Fed does could influence the bond market, which could influence mortgage rates.And guess what. We got new numbers on pending home sales for the month of June. Diana Ols.>> Well, Brian, pending home sales in June dropped just less than 1% from May and we're down 2.8% from June of last year. These counts are based on signed contracts for existing homes. So, people out shopping in Ju ...

Mortgage Market Trends - US mortgage applications to buy a home declined to the lowest level since late May [1] - Elevated borrowing costs contributed to the decline in mortgage applications [1]

Market Trends - US mortgage applications to purchase a home jumped to the highest level since early 2023 [1] Financial Indicators - Borrowing costs barely budged [1]