Unlike the stock market, it's hard for the average person to know when the bond market is getting turned upside-down. So, looking back at last Friday, when mortgage rates jumped very, very quickly in a short period of time, a lot of people got surprised (and burned).
With stocks, we can all turn on CNBC, Bloomberg, or host of other channels when the Dow Jones Industrial Average heads into a tailspin. That sort of "market event" is usually the lead story on the evening news when it happens, too.
With the bond market, though, that almost never happens. There is no clear "buy" or "sell" signal.
So, even though mortgages are so important to everyday people and mortgage rates are determined by the pricing of mortgage bonds, there is nobody there when things are souring to "make it real" for the everyday Joe like there is for stockholders. We all just sit in the dark.
Last Friday, markets turned quickly and rate shoppers could have locked in lower rates if they only knew that the market was slipping away from them.
Until the media starts covering the bond market and mortgage rates, be sure to saddle up with a trusted advisor that can walk you through the land mines of the mortgage-backed securities markets.
The interest rate you save may be your own.
For some guidelines on finding yourself a trusted advisor be sure to take a look at my Learning Center link.
