Ben Bernanke’s Mortgage-Refi Nation

In the month since the Federal Reserve announced plans to buy $40 billion of mortgage-backed securities a month for as long as it takes to spur lending, the Mortgage Bankers Association reports that the average 30-year loan has dipped to 3.53 percent as of Sept. 28 and has driven refinance applications to jump to their highest level since 2009. Lender Processing Services notes that borrowers are now refinancing at an annualized rate of 22 percent. Some borrowers are taking out shorter-term loans that allow them pay down their debt quicker. Interestingly, Freddie Mac reports that homeowners ponied up cash to reduce the principal on their loans in nearly 25 percent of all refinancings during this year’s second quarter. | Read More