Well our credit is shot, but at least it's cheaper now...

because it's not getting any easier

Author

John Birke
March 11, 2024

The only newsletter (probably) where you can get the latest market trends, mortgage news, and social + AI updates all in one place

March 11th, 2024

This week was a mixed bag

  1. Biden sends junks fees to the landfill

  2. just in time for us to stop paying our bills.

  3. The Fed doubles down on their “higher for longer” policy

  4. while layoffs pop up

  5. and employment starts to slide.

  6. And the government didn’t shut down, but the bigger fight still looms.

  7. Oh, and rates actually got a lot better this week too!

Plus, LinkedIn just gave itself and industry-expert-chiq facelift

Really quick, if someone forwarded this email to you, don’t settle for being at mooch. Sign up and get it for yourself here 👇

Ok, let’s get to it!

 The Mortgage Part 

💳 Junk Fees: Biden administration cracks down on bank fees, setting a max of $8 fees for credit card lates

New CFPB rule caps banks' credit card late fees at $8

By cutting late fees to $8 from an average of around $32, more than 45 million card users would save an average of $220 annually, the CFPB said in a release.

www.cnbc.com/2024/03/05/cfpb-rule-caps-credit-card-late-fees-at-8.html

📉 Credit Hit: Good thing too, because the average credit score just dropped for the first time in 10 years as increasing debt starts catching up to us

Credit scores decrease for the first time in a decade as more borrowers fall behind on payments

The national average credit score slipped for the first time in a decade, driven by increases in missed borrower payments, according to FICO.

www.cnbc.com/2024/03/06/credit-scores-decrease-for-the-first-time-in-a-decade-fico-reports.html

⛔ No Cuts For You: Jerome Powell doubled down on the "sit and wait" policy, stating rates can't come down until inflation starts making substantial moves toward 2%

Powell reinforces position that the Fed is not ready to start cutting interest rates

Powell said policymakers remain attentive to the risks that inflation poses and don't want to ease up too quickly.

www.cnbc.com/2024/03/06/powell-reinforces-position-that-the-fed-is-not-ready-to-start-cutting-interest-rates.html

📈 Layoff Pop: February layoffs, especially in Tech, were the worst we've seen for that month since the Financial Crisis

Layoffs rise to the highest for any February since 2009, Challenger says

The total of 84,638 planned cuts showed an increase of 3% from January and 9% from a year ago.

www.cnbc.com/2024/03/07/layoffs-rise-to-the-highest-for-any-february-since-2009-challenger-says.html

👷‍♂️ Employment Drop: We saw the unemployment rate make a rare move upward. But could this be good news for rates?

U.S. job growth totaled 275,000 in February but unemployment rate rose to 3.9%

Nonfarm payrolls were expected to increase by 198,000 in February, according to the Dow Jones consensus estimate.

www.cnbc.com/2024/03/08/jobs-report-february-2024-us-job-growth-totaled-275000.html

🏛 Crisis Averted?:  Congress actually managed to fund the government thru September. Well, half of it at least. They’ll be back to battling over spending for the other half in 2 weeks

Senate passes 6 funding bills to avert partial government shutdown before midnight deadline

The Senate voted 75-22 to pass six funding bills that will keep programs governed by them funded through the end of September.

abcnews.go.com/Politics/senate-passes-funding-bills-averting-government-shutdown/story?id=107941902

% Mortgage Rates: Speaking of which, we saw them drop back under 7% to the lowest they've been in over a month!

MBS Dashboard - MBS Prices, Treasuries and Analysis

View MBS prices and charts and follow the day's market activity with Micro News and Commentary.

www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/mbs

🔍 Coming this week: We have the consumer price index to tell us how much things are costing us, and retail sales to tell is how much of them we bought

U.S. Economic Calendar - MarketWatch

U.S. economic calendar consensus forecasts from MarketWatch.

www.marketwatch.com/economy-politics/calendar

 The Media Part 

🎯 Massive LinkedIn Updates! An opportunity to take a new look at the platform

Shifting Focus: LinkedIn is prioritizing professional publishers over creators to connect professionals with economic opportunities.

This could be a great opportunity to start prioritizing LinkedIn, especially if you struggle with the other, more trend-heavy platforms. We’ll discuss this more later, and be on the lookout for an upcoming training on this. For now let’s check out the details of this move:

 Collaboration with Publishers: Working with 400+ news publishers globally, LinkedIn's editorial team informs them of trending topics for better post optimization.

 Niche Approach: Unlike Meta, LinkedIn's niche approach fosters positive and informative engagement, catering to professionals seeking career-relevant insights.

Removal of Creator Mode: LinkedIn removes "Creator Mode" to focus on industry expertise rather than in-stream influencers.

 Investment in Publications: LinkedIn is investing in its podcast network and running a video sponsorship pilot with selected publishers to promote high-quality content within specific niches.

 Growth of Newsletters: A 150% increase in newsletters published on LinkedIn over the past year provides marketers more opportunities to target specific niches.

 Algorithm Update: LinkedIn updated its feed algorithm to prioritize insightful posts over trending updates, enhancing the platform's value for professionals.

 Marketing Opportunities: Marketers are encouraged to explore niche discussions on LinkedIn within their brand sectors for increased marketing value.

What do you think, is there potential for you with these changes, or is it just more confusing now?

LinkedIn Outlines Renewed Focus on Industry-Specific Content and Knowledge Sharing

LinkedIn's looking to partner with niche publishers to build its shared knowledge base.

www.socialmediatoday.com/news/linkedin-outlines-renewed-focus-industry-specific-content-knowledge/709411/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue:%202024-03-06%20Social%20Media%20Today%20Newsletter%20%5Bissue:59790%5D&utm_term=Social%20Media%20Today

Well that’s it for the best (and likely only) Mortgage AND Media Newsletter out there. This week instead of calling clients, spend your days calling your Washington reps and tell them to get their 💩 together before all of it hits the fan!

And as always, I’m happy to help you and your clients with anything mortgage, marketing, or social media. See you next week and

Thanks for reading!

John Birke | Mortgage Advisor | Content Coach

NMNLS 1150795

Movement Mortgage
9726 Old Bailes Road, Suites 121 & 130, Fort Mill, South Carolina 29707

NC-I-211026, SC-MLO-1150795, AR-128178, MO-1150795, OK-MLO29209 | Movement Mortgage LLC. All rights reserved. NMLS ID #39179 (www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org). Interest rates and products are subject to change without notice and may or may not be available at the time of loan commitment or lock-in. Borrowers must qualify at closing for all benefits. For more licensing information please visit movement.com/legal.


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