John Lake's (johnlake2) Blog

In the current market, it is easy to focus on the higher monthly payment, but there are several strategic advantages to purchasing when rates are elevated. As a veteran in the mortgage industry, I often remind clients that you can "refinance a rate, but you can't refinance your purchase price."He...

Whether it is a "good" time to refinance depends entirely on your current interest rate and your long-term goals. As of April 1, 2026, the market is in a very specific, volatile place.After dipping to 5.98% in Early March, the 30-year fixed refinance rate has drifted back up to an average of 6.78...

If there’s one word defining the market right now, it’s Volatility.Lately, it seems the market is being driven by headlines and 'loose lips' rather than actual economic data. Just look at the rollercoaster we’ve been on since last Friday: The Global Spark: European central banks hinted at raising...

We are currently seeing the 'Cost of Conflict' translate directly into the economy and home affordability.Despite global efforts to release oil reserves, crude prices have surged—Brent is up over 55% since the conflict began, climbing above $113 a barrel. At the pump, we’ve seen prices jump over ...

Here is what I'm telling my refinance clients. We have discussed a target rate that makes sense for them to refinance. Because dips are short lived, we have the advantage of striking when the time is right for them. I wanted to reach out with a quick update on the direction of mortgage rates.A li...

This is a critical moment for the market. As of today, March 9, 2026, we are seeing a classic "geopolitical tug-of-war" that has ended our brief stay in the 5% range. After a "flash sale" last week where rates dipped to 5.98%, the start of the U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran on Februa...

Today’s economic data was a bit of a rollercoaster. We received the Producer Price Index (PPI) report for January, and the numbers came in higher than expected across the board: Headline PPI: Increased 0.5% month-over-month (vs. 0.3% expected). Core PPI: Increased 0.8% month-over-month (vs. 0.3% ...

Wow, what a week. It feels like 2025 all over again!The BLS jobs report was just released, and we’ve heard this tune before. In January 2025, the jobs report came in at double the expectations. Guess what happened with the January 2026 report? You guessed it—doubled expectations again.The data cl...

This news item piqued my interest. It involves China's role in the US economy. Specifically, the news that China is slowing its purchase of US Treasuries (US Debt) often sparks fear of a rate spike. So I did some research,The Reality of China's "Exit"China’s holdings of US Treasuries have fallen ...

As we move into the second week of February 2026, the Equities market has reached a significant psychological and financial milestone. For the first time, the Dow Jones has broken 50,000. We saw the market raise over 1,200 point Friday, while the Bond market and Mortgage Back Securities were flat...