• Monday’s mortgage rates should be higher by approximately .375 of a discount point if compared to Friday’s early pricing. If you saw an intraday increase in rates as bonds soured late Friday, you should see a smaller increase this morning. The bond market is currently down 13/32 (4.76%).

 • Stocks are reacting negatively to the same weekend Middle East news as bonds with the Dow down 364 points and the Nasdaq down 101 points.

 • There is no relevant economic data set for release today- the only day of the week without at least one item listed on the calendar.

 • We have some weekend Middle East headlines driving bond trading this morning. News that Iran and the U.S. have exchanged military attacks for the first time in over a month has led to oil prices jumping, reigniting inflation concerns in the bond market. Inflation erodes a bond’s future fixed interest payments, making them less appealing to investors. This leads to bond yields and mortgage rates moving higher.

 • The rest of the week brings us the release of six monthly and quarterly economic reports for the markets to digest, in addition to the periodic Fed Beige Book report. This week’s economic releases include the typical new month reports, two of which are highly important to the financial and mortgage markets.

 • August's manufacturing index from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) will start this week's activities at 10:00 AM ET tomorrow morning. This influential report that measures manufacturer sentiment is expected to have slipped from July's 55.6. A lower reading than the predicted 55.2 would be considered good news for bonds and likely lead to an improvement in tomorrow’s mortgage rates.

 • Overall, Friday is the most important day of the week due to the influence of the Employment report, but tomorrow's release of the ISM index can also cause a noticeable change in rates.

 • No day stands out as a good candidate for a calmest day.

 • There is a high probability of it being a volatile week for the markets. Therefore, please proceed cautiously if still floating an interest rate and closing in the near future.

 • Visit our Daily Commentary page on our site for detailed explanations on current news that is relevant to mortgage rates.

CLICK HERE to view full detailed report and recommendations

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... Lock 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.