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Since Monday morning, Mobium's offices have been buzzing.  Phone call after phone call from clients about their brand-spanking-new purchase contracts.  I have conducted more Mortgage Planning sessions with clients in the past three days than I did in the three weeks prior!

Homes are selling in Chicago, folks, and I'm just not sure why it's happening now.  The Bears played last Sunday and bars were jammed all day long -- that doesn't leave much time for home shopping.  And, to boot, the weather wasn't even especially good.

And yet, it's happening.  Purchase contracts are being signed all over the city.

Thursday morning, the market will get to see the December's Existing Home Sales data in what I am viewing as a no-win situation for markets.  If the data is flat or weak, markets will brush it off and wait for Friday's New Home Sales data to show strength, holding rates steady.  If the data is strong, markets will hop on the Inflation Bandwagon and will push mortgage rates higher, citing that housing will force the Fed to raise the FFR in 2007.

It's only a few hours away.  And so we wait...

Dan Green is an active loan officer. Email or call 513-443-2020. Dan is on Twitter at @mortgagereports.