Portland Mortgage Market Update — June 13, 2025

It was inflation week and it had every opportunity to hurt interest rates in a bad way. But somehow, rates persevered. There was concern that this months CPI data would finally be the report to reflect higher costs due to tariffs, but it actually came in lower than expected due to some declines in energy prices and gasoline. Couple that with some decent bond auctions and rates enjoyed a nice little rally this week.

Declines in gas and energy prices you say? Yes, well, that was all well and good until Israel bombed Iran last night. Now the market is running scared due to fears that they may target Iran's oil production facilities and the cost for a barrel of oil is spiking. The Dow is down 600 points as a result, and usually this flight to safety would be good for bonds and rates, but the increased risk of rising inflation is have an adverse impact on rates and we are back to where we started the day yesterday.

Quick Humble Brag Moment. I have a loan funding today that I didn't think I would ever see the day. When I started working with these clients a couple of months ago their credit score was at a 520. We did credit repair in hopes to get it over 600, but it landed at a 575. I found a lender that would work with them, and we managed to get into contract, get the appraisal cleared, and complete SEVENTEEN Written Verifications of Employment all in 3 weeks. I am super happy for the clients that we were able to get this done. If you have any hard files that have been declined elsewhere, please reach out and I can see what we can do to put it back together