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 If you are looking for a Mortgage Professional who will give you the type of service that you deserve, contact Bob Amato (NMLS # 8632) and Empire Home Mortgage Inc. (NMLS # 44882). We answer our phones seven days a week until 9PM. Put us to the test! Our toll free number is (866) 742-5227.**
 Visit our website, www.empirehomemortgageinc.com . There you can get answers to all of your financing questions, view rates and search for foreclosed properties.**
 If you are considering locking in an interest rate for a New York mortgage or a Florida mortgage, read this post.**

 July's Housing Starts was post early this morning, revealing a 1.5% decline from June’s revised level. This was a little bit stronger than expected, but still points to a weak housing sector. Since this data isn’t known to carry much significance in the markets, its impact on today’s pricing has been minimal.**

 Industrial production data for July was also posted this morning. It showed a 0.9% spike in output at U.S. factories, mines and utilities. Analysts were expecting to see only a 0.4% increase, meaning that the manufacturing sector may have been stronger than thought last month. This is negative news for the bond market and mortgage rates because strengthening manufacturing activity hints at economic strength, making long-term securities such as mortgage related bonds less appealing to investors.**

 Also worth noting was an announcement from credit rating agency Fitch Ratings that they reaffirmed their AAA credit rating for the United States and gave a Stable Outlook. This is opposite of Standard and Poor’s recent downgrade. The AAA rating is the highest possible, so Fitch believes there is little risk of the U.S. not being able to pay its’ debt anytime soon. The downgrade caused havoc in the stock markets and fueled the huge bond rally that followed the announcement. Today’s news is being met with much less fanfare for some reason.**

 Tomorrow has one of the week’s key inflation indexes scheduled for release. The Labor Department will post July's Producer Price Index (PPI) early tomorrow morning. It will give us an indication of inflation at the producer level of the economy. There are two readings in the report- the overall index and the core data reading. The core data is more important because it excludes more volatile food and energy prices that can change significantly from month to month. Current forecasts call for no change in the overall reading and a 0.2% increase in the core data. A larger increase in the core data could push mortgage rates higher Wednesday morning. If it reveals weaker than expected readings, we may see mortgage rates improve as a result.**

 If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now... This is only my opinion of what I would do if I were financing a home. It is only an opinion and cannot be guaranteed to be in the best interest of all/any other borrowers. **

 Empire Home Mortgage Inc. is a registered Mortgage Broker with the New York State and Florida Banking Departments and our loans are arranged through third party providers.

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