Welcome to the Weekly Mortgage Update! Hoping you and yours had a wonderful and safe Fourth of July weekend, gathering with family and friends to celebrate. As we kick off the second half of this year, start the countdown to Taylor and Travis’ one year anniversary, and head down the road towards the DOUBLE sesquicentennial, also known as the big #300 for our great country, we wanted to say thanks for your business, your referrals, your friendship, and for reading this update.



As usual, before we get to the update, reminder that we have a GREAT network of trusted, locally owned, and operated resources to connect you to in order to help at your house. If it’s to correct an electrical issue that has gone way, way, WAY awry, or plumbing, or roofing, painting, or more, you can reach out to us to help connect you to someone to help! Now, back to the update. This week, rates bounced around and worsened some, but we’re hoping for improvement in the coming weeks. The rates are shown just above the trivia question. If you have questions about how these rates apply to your situation, let's talk. But as usual, there is LOTS GOING ON, SO LET’S GET STARTED!

BACK TO SCHOOL

As Outkast once asked, “what’s cooler than cool? …ICE COLD…” Capri Suns which is what you could come grab in the next few weeks while you drop off donations by July 25, bring your kids and grab a delicious CAPRI SUN and METHOD MORTGAGE BALLOON!



With the start of school in just over a month, we’re well on our way thru the Back-to-School Supply Drive! Our friends at Grace Klein brought a donation barrel this week so we can collect school supplies here at our office! Every backpack, notebook, and box of crayons helps a child start the school year with confidence. It's an easy way to make a difference in a kid's life this summer, and it all starts because of YOUR support. Thank you for being part of something bigger than a mortgage! Learn more of the details on what’s needed by clicking below!

CRAZY STORIES

We've had a few animal stories that deserved to join the Weekly Mortgage Update’s pantheon known as Crazy Stories.

First, meet Gracie, Real County's most wanted. This 3-year-old giraffe busted out of her enclosure at Cedar Hollow Ranch, about 100 miles west of San Antonio, and spent almost two WEEKS roaming the Texas Hill Country before anyone could pin her down, hiding out over roughly 7,500 acres of rugged ranch land. She was finally spotted from a helicopter, four miles south of home, resting near a pond with plenty to eat, on the wrong side of a fence.

Ranch manager Vick Jones is putting together a team to safely bring her back. Sheriff Nathan Johnson says he's tracked down wildebeests, water buffalo, monkeys, and zebras in his time, but Gracie was his first giraffe. Only in Texas does "Breaker, Breaker, keep your eyes peeled for a giraffe" count as a normal dispatch call.

Moving from Germany to Tasmania (which may be a sentence that’s never been typed before), let’s visit a new local celebrity who weighs as much as a small car. Neil, a 2,200-pound elephant seal, made his twice-yearly return to shore and immediately got to work bending traffic bollards, smashing fences, and picking “fights” with parked cars. Experts say it's just a young seal practicing for future dominance battles, since he's currently the only male his age around. Neil has racked up a TikTok following more than double Tasmania's entire population. Officials are begging fans to keep their distance, especially with small kids, before someone gets hurt trying to get the perfect Neil the Seal Selfie. Neil, for his part, seems pretty uninterested and unbothered by it all. Gang, it's his world, Tasmania is just living in it.

THE OTHER C OF LENDING

One of the first things that loan officers learn is about the “4 Cs of Credit:” Character, Capacity, Capital, and Collateral. Each can be key to the lending decisions we help with behind the scenes. Well, one bank in Italy is proposing a 5^th C… Cheese.

Credito Emiliano, based in the Parmesan producing region of northern Italy, accepts whole wheels of Parmigiano Reggiano as collateral for loans. And we're not talking a handful of wheels either, the bank currently has more than 400,000 of them sitting in temperature-controlled vaults. A single 84-pound wheel can be worth up to $2,500, and unlike a car that loses value the second you drive it off the lot, this cheese actually gets MORE valuable the longer it ages. Believe it or not, the bank actually loses less money on defaulted cheese loans than on traditional collateral.



So be sure to itemize your cheese on your next loan application. Character, Capacity, Capital, Collateral, and apparently, Cheese. Maybe those Italian bankers had a lost in translation moment with someone referring to money as CHEDDAR. Click below to read more!

REAL ESTATE TO BEHOLD



Given the big World Cup game between Lionel Messi and his Argentinian Teammates against an underrated and tough Swiss side, our editors SCOURED listings in both Switzerland and Argentina and found a couple of phenomenal listings to represent each side well. Let’s start with one in Switzerland.

If you’re ready to host a whole crowd for a watch party, this $55.76 million estate on Lake Geneva has room for it. Villa Carinthia sits in Founex, just 15 minutes from downtown Geneva, on more than an acre of landscaped grounds with its own private beach. It's still under construction, with completion set for 2028, but the plans are already jaw dropping. The 21,662 square foot home spans three floors with six bedrooms and seven en suite bathrooms.



Developer Byron Baciocchi named the villa after his aunt, known in the family as the ultimate gracious host, and the design lives up to that legacy. Guests can relax in a full spa with a sauna, hammam and cold plunge, then head outside to an infinity pool that seems to melt right into the lake. When it's time to party, there's a dance floor, a speakeasy style lounge, a private theater, and an underground car gallery (SEE BELOW) with its own bar. AND some of the best Alpine skiing is just a short drive away. Not a bad neighborhood.

Here’s a gorgeous property in Buenos Aires to represent Team Argentina. This stunning French-style mansion sits in the prestigious Belgrano C neighborhood, one of Buenos Aires' most exclusive areas. The historic estate spans nearly 19,000 square feet on four levels and features original oak floors, marble fireplaces, crystal chandeliers, soaring ceilings, and beautifully preserved architectural details throughout.



Currently divided into three connected residences, the property could serve as a private home, embassy, boutique hotel, or corporate headquarters. It also includes beautifully landscaped gardens, parking for 11 cars, and a caretaker's house, making it one of the city's most impressive luxury listings. Check it out below.

Coming back to America, and to mark America's 250th birthday, we dug up six Revolutionary era homes still standing today, and every one of them is for sale. In Franklin Township, New Jersey, a 1771 fieldstone manor called Lansdown once hosted George Washington himself, and it can be yours for $3.6 million. Head to Bourbon County, Kentucky, and you'll find Johnston's Inn, built in 1782 as a stagecoach stop where both Andrew Jackson and Abraham Lincoln once passed through, making it the oldest home in the county. Over in Virginia, the Mitchell House dates back to 1762 and comes with quite the story, including a grandmother who once fell straight through a decrepit porch before it was restored. These homes were built for merchants, colonels and generals who rubbed elbows with the founding fathers themselves. Now their owners are ready to pass the torch to the next generation of history lovers.

THE ECONOMY AND REAL ESTATE

The National Association of Realtors released its June numbers this morning, and the headline is a mixed bag. Existing home sales slipped 2.4% from May, landing at a pace of 4.09 million homes a year, which came in weaker than experts expected. May's report actually got revised UP a bit too, which makes June's dip look a little more real. The good news? Sales are still up 2.8% compared to this time last year, so the bigger picture trend is still pointing the right direction.

Prices, meanwhile, hit a new record. The median home price climbed to $440,600, up 1.8% from a year ago. That's not because homes are suddenly appreciating faster, it's more about WHICH homes sold this month, since pricier homes in the Northeast carried more of the activity.

Inventory dipped slightly to 1.56 million homes, though it's still running 1.3% ahead of last year. And here's the stat we love to see: first time buyers made up 33% of all sales in June. That's a strong number and shows more people are finding their way into homeownership, even with today's rates and prices.

We wanted to close this week with something that talks about the impact purchases can have throughout the economy and local area, brought to you by our friends at Keeping Current Matters. It touches on the money that flows thru the community from a home purchase or sale. We easily can forget all the folks that make that closing happen – loan officers, processors, appraisers, underwriters, insurance agents, title reps, surveyors, home warranty folks, termite inspectors, home inspectors, septic inspectors, electricians, plumbers, roofers, AND OF COURSE let’s not forget to mention all the great REALTORS. Keep reading KCM's recent blog, titled, What Buying or Selling a Home Gives Back to Your Community.

What Buying or Selling a Home Gives Back to Your Community

Buying or selling a home is a big decision, especially with today's costs. But here's something reassuring: your move doesn't just change your life, it gives your whole community a boost too. Real estate added about $5.6 trillion to the economy in 2025, according to the National Association of Realtors, and a lot of that comes from everyday folks like you.

Your Move Puts Real Money Into the Local Economy

Every sale sends money flowing through your area. Buying an existing home adds about $64,000 to the local economy. Buy new construction, and that number jumps to more than $134,000 (see graph below):

Over half of that comes from the actual building process, with the rest going to agents, lenders, and everything you buy settling in.

One Sale Keeps a Lot of People Working

Behind every sale is a whole crew of people doing their jobs, contractors, lenders, inspectors, movers, and more. NAR's Chief Economist Lawrence Yun points out that more home sales mean more work for everyone from moving companies to local mortgage teams. Your move helps your neighbors make payroll too.

Your Local Impact May Be Even Bigger

Impact varies a lot by state. In California, a single new home sale adds more than $300,000 locally. In Hawaii, it's over $350,000 (see map below):

In California, a single sale adds more than $300,000 to the local economy. In Hawaii, it's over $350,000. Even in the most affordable states, the number lands in the tens of thousands.

Want to know what a move would mean where you live? A local agent can show you the figure close to home.

Bottom Line

Moving is a personal milestone AND an investment in your community. If the time is right, let's connect. You'll make a bigger difference than you might think.

RATES:

Pricing and rates remain erratic and volatile. Confirm rates & pricing directly with your loan officer.

Check out the trivia below and remember, there is a drawing to enter to win a gift card. This is your chance to enter for a chance to win the gift card awarded every other month. This trivia question is for the July & August drawing/card.

TRIVIA QUESTION

One of the biggest American success stories and iconic brands in our 250-year history is Walt Disney. But before all the recognizable characters and theme parks, Walt Disney created Oswald the Lucky Rabbit with animator Ub Iwerks. Walt Disney lost the rights to Oswald in 1928 following a business trip to New York that was anything but magical. Legend has it that the long train ride back to California gave Walt the time to find the inspiration for a brand-new character... Mickey Mouse. Nearly 80 years later, in 2006, Disney CEO Bob Iger negotiated to bring Oswald back to Disney.

What did Iger/Disney trade to reacquire the rights to Oswald the Lucky Rabbit?

A. Thousands of acres of swampland in Central Florida that later became part of Walt Disney World

B. Sportscaster Al Michaels and the rights to broadcast Sunday Night Football

C. 1% of the licensing revenue from all LEGO Star Wars products—in perpetuity

D. The rights to Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (Rabbit for Rabbit trade)

E. Millions of dollars worth of Mortgage-Backed Securities for Florida properties, that two years later, were worthless.

Click here to EMAIL ME YOUR ANSWER.

**Email your answer to me to have your name entered in a drawing for a gift card at the beginning of even months and YES you can go back and answer previous weeks’ questions if you have not answered them already AND if we have not unveiled the answer yet***