The near-record low mortgage rates seen during the past few weeks may not be around much longer.

Signs of improving economic conditions could lead Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke to raise key interest rates, driving up mortgage rates, says Stephen Stanley, chief economist at Pierpont Securities LLC.

The evidence includes more consumers are paying their bills on time. Past-due accounts at American Express declined 34 percent compared to a year ago, and Target Corp. reported its lowest delinquency rate in two years during the second quarter.

In another sign of economic improvement, fewer banks reported tightening lending standards this month, one reason consumer borrowing rose for the second time in three months.

“If lending standards start to stabilize, that’ll be another reason to remove the emergency measures, including the zero rate,” says Jay Bryson, a senior global economist at Wells Fargo Securities LLC in Charlotte, N.C., who formerly worked at the Fed in Washington.

Source: Bloomberg, Bob Willis and Anthony Feld (05/28/2010) http://www.realtor.org/RMODaily.nsf/pages/News2010052801?OpenDocument

Investors breathed a sigh of relief Wednesday when Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke told Congress that interest rates are likely to remain low for an extended period. The economy, he said, "still requires support for recovery."

Investors see these low rates as a boon to a recovery of employment and business.

Bernanke’s announcement also took the edge off the news Wednesday that housing sales hit a new low in January.

"Even though nothing he said was particularly new, it was just enough to calm the ruffled feathers that were out there," said Jim McDonald, chief investment strategist at Northern Trust in Chicago.

Source: The Associated Press, Tim Paradis (02/24/2010)

http://www.realtor.org/RMODaily.nsf/pages/News2010022501?OpenDocument

Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke said on Friday that he was optimistic the economy is about to take off.

Bernanke acknowledged that credit is still tight, especially for businesses, but he told an audience of bankers, academics, and economists that the worst is over.

"Although we have avoided the worst, difficult challenges still lie ahead," Bernanke said. "We must work together to build on the gains already made to secure a sustained economic recovery."

Bernanke called for stronger regulation of financial rules "to ensure that the enormous costs of the past two years will not be borne again."

Source: The Associated Press, Jeannine Aversa (08/21/2009)

Source: http://www.realtor.org/RMODaily.nsf/pages/News2009082403?OpenDocument