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Show Home MapziM. THE DAILY RTRXLtX Vridkyl Ptge 20 prl S. IMt mtoMvMh Aoril ffools mW April Fools Day has passed you say? Not for any household containing children 5 yrs of age or under, possessing a new found joke and the stamina of the EverReady Bunny w ith the imagination throttle wide open. Luckily, that's not really old enough to cause any serious worries, just a lot of "who put the sail in the sugar bowl?". "Why is mv soft drink foaming over like Ml. Saint Helens?" (which at least explains where the salt went), or "Who replaced my left shoe w ith this little pink size one and a quarter?" "No. it was a very good joke" I console my 2 yr old. "I only knew because myshoes don't have a picture of Pant ing Barbie on it". I suppose I should appreciate these innocent years. Those thought were funny jokes included changing the alarm clocks in my sisters rooms to wake them about 5 hours early for school. As they went oft (the alarms) I'd rush in to notify them the bus was on its way in five minutes.. .hurry! One just sat and cried, the other was dressed and headed for the door in 3 minutes flat which showed enormous dedication to that cute boy that sat across from her in period number one. The unnatural darkness as she opened the door stopped her from a full trip to the bus stop, and she didn't buy my theory of a rare spring solar eclipse. I finally gave it up in college after helping a friend fake a car accident call to his brother. When he called back on our "1CU" phone number, he was told to get to the hospital quick if he wants to see his brother. My friend let him roam the hospital halls for twenty minutes, then had to call it off when he found out his parents were notified and planning on flying home early from their vacation. (My friend assured me his brothers jokes were far worse). April Fools came a few weeks early for interest rates. January was good - 30 year rates at or near 7 percent. February was good - staying near 7 percent until the end of the month. March was not good. March was very bad. in fact. They gradually drifted up to 7.S percent, and then disaster struck on March 8th as rates went up one half percent to 8 percent in the First minutes of the day. ; Well, I guess you can't really call that a disaster - an earthquake hurting thousands is a disaster. Losing your job and getting kicked out of your home is a disaster. Actually, making a movie with Patrick Swayze in drag, and then including Wesley Snipes in even worse drag, now feat's a DISASTER although anyone caught w ithout their rate locked in would likely place Ihcmsclvcs in that category as well. L' So what happened with inter 1 est rates, anyway? On March 8th, the unemployment reports were due out for February. Economists on Wall Street expected the report to show an increase in new jobs of. Remember: around 300.000. Financing A Home improvement in the economy, including people going back to work, is bad for interest rates, and 3(X).0OO is a big improvement. However, much of that was due to a slow down from the harsh winter in January, and the number was not expected to have any impact on interest rates. The report came out "at 700.000 new jobs created. Not only was this number by all analysts, but it was higher than any increase in 20 years. What happened next was diamatic. The stock market the tumbled 200 points the since one day drop ' biggest big one of 87. The bond market faired worse. The long bond controls mortgage interest rates; when the bond falls, interest rates go up ... follow me so far? Okay, so the bond market investors hear the news, and the market immediately fell 3 points. This is the biggest one day drop in at least 20 years, and happened before 8:00 Utah time. In f fact, the market feared a freny was in the making, and temporarily closed the bond market to cool off the emotions. Fortunately, w hen Monday came around, emotions had settled. For the rest of the month, the rates pretty tt'tch held steady.' One day 1.15 next day 8 percent again. Which in truth is actually a decent rate. Sure, it's not nearly as good as 7 percent, and may add $50 to $100 to your monthly payment in comparison, but the rate is still much lower than historically. If you are currently in the process of buying a house, what do you do? Do you lock in your rate at 8 percent, or gamble for something better down the road. Which way is better? That depends on your interest rate "Gambling Tolerance Level or "GTL as is commonly referred to by no one but me, since I just oimteFesft fattens it float down option . thejf drop. That way you win either way. But then again, if you really enjoy gambling ... lower rate. The lesson in this is clear the future is completely unpredictable w hen attempting to fore- tell the movement of interest Mark Greer is one rates. ers of the own- of Alherton Mortgage. Column suggestions or loan questions are welcome by con tailing him at his office in Jamestown Square, Prow, or br calling 373- - 6334. Will April bring back lower rates, or fool" us again? The only sure thing is if you take the gamble out of the interest rate game. Lock in your loan application and use a during 2i made it up. But wait - there is a third option. How about an interest rate lock with a float down option? A few banks and mortgage companies offer you the best of both worlds. Lock in now. and if rates drop a quarter percent or more within an allotted lime frame, you can take the ; ( i - i L f completely-unexpecte- rccl'o red fmt III No SrOift V ma Southgate Village Eastgatc Sooth not) EaM Prawn 373 -C377 6 it tu i Mt-i- m i IXVHNl llVl IKKi S Marietta tximhrh tfcra 798-14- 6 763-S33- 3 S 2T7 (A()( I I -- inuu j GEORGETOWN !a Vfils- -e Norths 40olToOO Wort 90 200 N. 1100 EaM Spanish Fork 798-145- RNi. 1 1 - sell-of- AmerkmHtk CtJj 4 leaia Pro SpMbaFork Vnr ScCing rkate KSPVi UAL EST4TI A 374-OO.- Vt CniUJrtttXT. LC. 377-O40- 0 - V 11MNorl1 3WSR. ZkntmriAtat. to c. 4 Mi m am I )M ' CNW tM4JHi M Id mmm HW limn mm it M ZM Wh, MM U wm M fa tltMOi U4-i-m VIAFAX "BY OWNER" PROPERTIES f y,' v ' y U , 7770 0O014 ttlU--i SR lour IwaHHi- -i PwpiArlOCOtS 4MV7tia Taoikn.4l.ta XMOOte ft. mat i KJt kw M. Mr Pin ID i TO |