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	<title>My Mind on Mortgages</title>
	<link>http://evanswanson.com</link>
	<description>Evan Swanson, a mortgage professional based in Portland, shares his knowledge, thoughts &#38; advice on mortgage &#38; financially related topics</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:44:59 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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		<title>Rate Update March 10, 2010</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Mortgage rates reversed modestly higher this morning.
Mortgage rates are being pressured higher this morning in response to a higher open for stocks.  Stocks and bonds compete for the same investment dollar so when the equity markets rally it is often at the expense of bonds.
The US Treasury is set to deliver $21 billion in 10-year [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://evanswanson.com/rate-update/rate-update-march-10-2010/</link>
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		<title>Bull and Bear tug-of-war</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Readers of this blog are probably well aware of the fact that mortgage rates have basically remained in a tight sideways range since mid-January.  Followers of the stock market know that the equity markets have effectively traded sideways over that time as well.  The WSJ published this article today summarizing two opposing views of stocks [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://evanswanson.com/personal-finance/investing-personal-finance/bull-and-bear-tug-of-war/</link>
			</item>
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		<title>Rate Update March 9, 2010</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Mortgage rates are priced slightly better this morning.
I noted in yesterday’s rate update that public support for Greece’s austerity plan pressured rates higher because of an unwinding in the “flight-to-quality” trade.  However, this morning that trade is gaining traction due to a surprise announcement by Fitch Ratings Service in which they raised concern over Portugal [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://evanswanson.com/rate-update/rate-update-march-9-2010/</link>
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		<title>Rate Update March 8, 2010</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Mortgage rates are unchanged from Friday.
Over the weekend French President Nicholas Sarkozy publicly voiced France’s support for Greece as it tries to navigate its way out of the financial mess they find themselves in.  His support is likely to take some more wind out of the “flight-to-quality” trade which has helped mortgage rates over the [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://evanswanson.com/rate-update/rate-update-march-8-2010/</link>
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		<title>Rate Update March 5, 2010</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Mortgage rates are slightly worse this morning.
This morning’s all important jobs report was better than expected (click HERE to learn why this report is so impactful).  The markets were bracing for weak jobs numbers due to poor weather last month but the report indicated that only 36,000 jobs were lost in the month February.  The [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://evanswanson.com/rate-update/rate-update-march-5-2010/</link>
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		<title>M24U</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Last September I wrote this article for my newsletter in which I introduced my readers to the Irving Fisher&#8217;s equation of exchange which reads MV=PT where M= money supply, V= velocity of money, P=price  level, and T= quantity of goods and services transacted (real Gross  Domestic Product [GDP]).
The thesis of the article was [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://evanswanson.com/rate-update/economics-interest-rates/m24u/</link>
			</item>
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		<title>Rate Update March 4, 2010</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Pricing on mortgage rates improved modestly yesterday afternoon.
Blackrock Inc., the world’s largest money-management firm, announced yesterday that they would be increasing their asset allocation of US Treasuries in their client&#8217;s portfolios due to an uncertain economic outlook.  This is a perfect example of a “flight-to-quality” trade where investors purchase relatively “safe” US Treasuries because other [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://evanswanson.com/rate-update/rate-update-march-4-2010/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Using retirement funds for down payment</title>
		<description><![CDATA[For many people saving for a rainy day is hard enough as it is.  Add on top of that all the other financial objectives a person is typically concerned with (i.e. retirement, college savings, paying down debt) saving for a down payment on a home can be difficult.  Because of this I often have clients [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://evanswanson.com/general-mortgage-info/first-time-homebuyer-general-mortgage-info/low-down-payment/using-retirement-funds-as-a-down-payment/</link>
			</item>
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		<title>The tax implications of lending to family</title>
		<description><![CDATA[As I blogged about back on September 14th many first-time hombuyers have received gifts or loans from family members over the past year so that they can take advantage of historically low interest rates, affordable housing prices, and the government&#8217;s tax credit.  The onslaught of familial generosity is great for homebuyers who would otherwise be [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://evanswanson.com/personal-finance/taxes/the-tax-implications-of-lending-family-money/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Rate Update March 3, 2010</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Most mortgage rates are effectively unchanged from yesterday.
Greece unveiled their plan to cut its budget deficit today.  For the first time they included credible details which should help reduce fears about default on their bonds.  Greek officials will meet with EU leaders this weekend to gain support for the plan.  This news is likely to [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://evanswanson.com/rate-update/rate-update-march-3-2010/</link>
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