What the Fed’s rate hike means for one community bank

May 5, 2022
Mortgage rates are rising, but deposit rates will lag, says Laurie Stewart, president of Sound Community Bank in Seattle.
Laurie Stewart, the head of Sound Community Bank in Seattle, says pressures to hold more capital will "impact our ability to serve clients and to be investable."
Courtesy Sound Community Bank

Anticipated Fed interest rate hike already being felt

May 3, 2022
Mortgage rates, for example, probably already have the Fed hikes built in.
The Federal Reserve is planning to raise interest rates this week. If you're trying to take out a mortgage, chances are you're already feeling the effects.
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The mortgage business has "come to a screeching halt"

Apr 26, 2022
Vivian Gueler of Pacific Trust Group said rising rates are slowing the housing market, but it could be months before prices fall.
"The market was just too crazy," said mortgage broker Vivian Gueler. "The low rates drove up too much business, too much demand — and the prices, ultimately."
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The Fed's interest rate hike is already reducing demand for mortgages

Apr 7, 2022
Getting demand to soften is the point because that's expected to help tame inflation.
Applications for home mortgages and loan refinancings are slowing down. Will inflation follow the trend?
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The staying power of Case-Shiller, a marquee housing metric

Apr 6, 2022
It’s not the most timely home price indicator, but it does have advantages, including mapping prices over long periods.
Homes line a Southern California street in 2003. An approach for tracking house prices developed by economists Karl Case and Robert Shiller in the 1980s remains an important market indicator today.
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Borrowing for second homes to become more expensive

Jan 7, 2022
Demand for vacation homes has crowded out would-be homeowners, but will higher fees make a dent?
Upfront fees for some second-home loans could increase by as much as 3.9% starting in April. Above, beachfront vacation homes in Florida.
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How mortgage algorithms perpetuate racial disparity in home lending

Aug 25, 2021
A new investigation finds that people of color are more likely to have their mortgage applications rejected than comparable white applicants.
A new investigation finds that people of color are more likely have their mortgage applications rejected than similar white applicants.
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For public good, not for profit.

As home prices rise, so does mortgage debt

May 20, 2021
Are borrowers and lenders taking on too much risk?
Most analysts don't expect home prices to reverse in the near term, but if mortgage rates were to substantially increase, the pace of appreciation could slow.
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More homeowners are back to paying their mortgages

May 3, 2021
But the recovery has been unequal. Black homeowners are at a higher risk of foreclosure when forbearance rules expire, one nonprofit says.
Despite recent trends, more than 2 million mortgages are still in forbearance.
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Housing is hot, and LA mortgage broker sees no sign of a slowdown

Apr 29, 2021
Vivian Gueler of Pacific Trust Group says demand for housing in Los Angeles is outpacing supply, thanks largely to low interest rates.
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