🏛️ The Lending Letter 🏡

Inauguration Day Edition: Rates Tick Up, Markets Watch Closely

Happy Inauguration Day! 🇺🇸 While history is being made in Washington D.C., mortgage rates are doing their own thing—and spoiler alert, they moved up slightly today. But before you panic-scroll through doomsday headlines, let's break down what's actually happening with your money and what today's political transition means for borrowers.

🎯 What's Up With That 14-Basis-Point Jump?

So rates moved up 0.14% today. That's 14 basis points for the finance nerds out there (hi, we see you 👋). Is it the inauguration? Sort of. Is it inflation data? Also sort of. Is it bond markets being dramatic? Absolutely. 📈

Here's what's happening: The bond market doesn't love uncertainty, and new administrations—regardless of party—create uncertainty. Investors are recalibrating their expectations around trade policy, fiscal spending, and the Federal Reserve's next moves. It's like everyone's playing 4D chess, except the pieces are billions of dollars and nobody really knows the rules. 🤔

The good news? We're still hovering in the low 6% range, which is significantly better than where we were just a few months ago. Think of it like this: you wanted the concert ticket for $50, but it's $62. Not ideal, but you're still going to the concert. 🎸

💰 Lender Promos: Strike While the Iron's Hot

🧠 Educational Corner: How Presidential Policies Actually Affect Mortgage Rates

Everyone wants to know: "Will the new administration make my mortgage cheaper?" Fair question. Complicated answer. Let's break it down. 🎓

🏘️ For Real Estate Investors: The January Window

Can we talk about how underrated January is for real estate investing? Everyone's recovering from the holidays, making New Year's resolutions they'll abandon by February, and generally not thinking about real estate. Which means you should be. 🎯

Why January Rocks for Investors:

1. Tax Season Motivation
Sellers who didn't unload their property in December are now staring at another year of property taxes, insurance, and maintenance costs. According to NAR data, January sellers often accept lower offers just to avoid another year of carrying costs. That's your negotiating leverage right there. 💪

2. Less Competition
While casual buyers are still in "someday" mode, serious investors are actively hunting. But there are WAY fewer of them in January than in spring. Less competition = better deals. Math is beautiful, isn't it? 🧮

3. The STR Setup Play
Buy an STR property now, and you have February and March to renovate, furnish, and optimize before the spring/summer travel season hits. Our STR specialists can help you identify markets where booking season starts early, giving you immediate cash flow. 🏖️

Level Up Your Investment Game:

• Already Own Rental Properties?Get a cost segregation study and potentially unlock massive tax deductions you didn't know existed. We're talking five-figure tax savings in some cases. It's literally found money. 💰

• Need to Furnish That STR? Stop putting it on credit cards at 24% APR. Our partner offers 0% interest funding specifically for furnishing and amenities. Yes, zero percent. No, it's not a typo. 🛋️

💡 Personal Finance Hack: The Backdoor 529 Strategy

📊 Market Intel: What the Data Actually Says

Let's cut through the noise with some real numbers:

Inventory Remains Tight, But Improving
We're seeing about 15% more active listings compared to this time last year, according to Realtor.com's latest data. Still below pre-pandemic levels, but the trend is moving in the right direction. More inventory = more options = more negotiating power for buyers. 📈

Price Appreciation Continues (But at a Slower Pace)
Home prices are still climbing, but we're looking at 4-6% annual appreciation instead of the bonkers 15-20% we saw a couple years ago. Zillow's Home Value Index shows this is actually healthy—sustainable growth beats boom-bust cycles every single time. 🏡

Rental Demand Stays Strong
Even with current rates, rental properties make sense because rental vacancy rates remain near historic lows. People need places to live, and many can't or won't buy in this rate environment. If you're positioned as a landlord, you're selling a product (housing) that has consistent demand. That's a good business to be in. 🔑

🤔 Should You Lock a Rate Right Now?

If you're actively shopping for a mortgage, you're probably asking: "Should I lock now or wait?" Here's the honest answer:

Lock if: You've found the right property, the numbers work at 6.21%, and you're ready to close within 30-60 days. Trying to time rate movements is like trying to time the stock market—even professionals get it wrong constantly. 🎲

Float if: You're still shopping for properties and won't close for 60+ days. Rates could go either direction, but you're not making an immediate commitment anyway. Just know that floating comes with risk. ⚖️

The Real Strategy: Focus less on scoring the absolute lowest rate and more on finding the right property at the right price. You can always refinance later if rates drop. But you can't go back in time and buy that perfect investment property someone else bought while you were agonizing over 0.14%. Trust us, we've seen this movie before. 🎬

🌟 The Bottom Line

Inauguration Day brings uncertainty to markets, and markets respond to uncertainty with volatility. A 14-basis-point uptick in rates is just noise in the grand scheme of things. What matters more is your long-term strategy. 🎯

At 6.21%, mortgage rates aren't historically high—they're historically normal. We got spoiled by the 3% days, but that was the anomaly, not the norm. Real estate has built wealth for generations at rates much higher than this. The fundamentals—limited supply, strong demand, tax advantages, forced savings through principal paydown—haven't changed. 🏠

Whether you're a first-time buyer or a seasoned investor, the question isn't "Is this the perfect rate?" It's "Does this deal work at this rate?" If the answer is yes, don't overthink it. The best investments are often made when others are sitting on the sidelines waiting for "perfect conditions" that never quite arrive. 💪

Stay focused, stay informed, and remember: real wealth is built through consistent action over time, not perfect timing. Even on days when rates tick up a bit. 📈