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"I couldn't survive without Rate Alert!" -- Hary M. from St Louis, MO(1/14/2010)"I’ve been enjoying the e-mail notifications, but never took the time to go to the website. I tend to get embroiled in loans and put off things I know I "should do". I have been going to the website throughout the day this week and have saved money for my borrowers and myself. It’s much more proactive than waiting and wondering if I will get an e-mail to see what the market is doing. " -- Jamie O’Neal from CA(10/22/2009)"I recently switched from a more expensive rate alert service. Your new site is awesome! I now have the confidence to know when to lock my loans via text, e-mail or online and so much more, all at much better price. And the new MBS Tracker rocks! I love the trend lines and the levels of support. Outstanding!" -- Ray Blindauer, CA(10/5/2009)"For over a decade, with the help of Dave Shirmeyer, I have been better informed on a timely basis, than with any other market commentary I have subscribed to...I know them to have been a reliable and consistent benchmark for decision-making, which in itself is worth more than the subscription price." -- Scott F. from Green Bay, WI(10/4/2009)"Today was my first day using Rate Alert and it has already paid off! I was floating a $175,000 deal from last evening. The market opened strong and the recommendation was to float until 1:00pm. At 12:34pm a Lock Alert was sent and the MBS Tracker jumped from -6 to -20. I went ahead and locked my deal and within 1 hour I had 4 investor re-prices for the worse. I ended up $357 to the good on the very 1st day with just 1 deal. That proved to be a great return on my investment." -- Frank Ruzicka from Conerstone Mortgage Inc.(1/13/2010)"I couldn't survive without Rate Alert!" -- Hary M. from St Louis, MO(1/14/2010)"I’ve been enjoying the e-mail notifications, but never took the time to go to the website. I tend to get embroiled in loans and put off things I know I "should do". I have been going to the website throughout the day this week and have saved money for my borrowers and myself. It’s much more proactive than waiting and wondering if I will get an e-mail to see what the market is doing. " -- Jamie O’Neal from CA(10/22/2009)"I recently switched from a more expensive rate alert service. Your new site is awesome! I now have the confidence to know when to lock my loans via text, e-mail or online and so much more, all at much better price. And the new MBS Tracker rocks! I love the trend lines and the levels of support. Outstanding!" -- Ray Blindauer, CA(10/5/2009)"For over a decade, with the help of Dave Shirmeyer, I have been better informed on a timely basis, than with any other market commentary I have subscribed to...I know them to have been a reliable and consistent benchmark for decision-making, which in itself is worth more than the subscription price." -- Scott F. from Green Bay, WI(10/4/2009)"Today was my first day using Rate Alert and it has already paid off! I was floating a $175,000 deal from last evening. The market opened strong and the recommendation was to float until 1:00pm. At 12:34pm a Lock Alert was sent and the MBS Tracker jumped from -6 to -20. I went ahead and locked my deal and within 1 hour I had 4 investor re-prices for the worse. I ended up $357 to the good on the very 1st day with just 1 deal. That proved to be a great return on my investment." -- Frank Ruzicka from Conerstone Mortgage Inc.(1/13/2010)"I couldn't survive without Rate Alert!" -- Hary M. from St Louis, MO(1/14/2010)"I’ve been enjoying the e-mail notifications, but never took the time to go to the website. I tend to get embroiled in loans and put off things I know I "should do". I have been going to the website throughout the day this week and have saved money for my borrowers and myself. It’s much more proactive than waiting and wondering if I will get an e-mail to see what the market is doing. " -- Jamie O’Neal from CA(10/22/2009)"I recently switched from a more expensive rate alert service. Your new site is awesome! I now have the confidence to know when to lock my loans via text, e-mail or online and so much more, all at much better price. And the new MBS Tracker rocks! I love the trend lines and the levels of support. Outstanding!" -- Ray Blindauer, CA(10/5/2009)"For over a decade, with the help of Dave Shirmeyer, I have been better informed on a timely basis, than with any other market commentary I have subscribed to...I know them to have been a reliable and consistent benchmark for decision-making, which in itself is worth more than the subscription price." -- Scott F. from Green Bay, WI(10/4/2009)"Today was my first day using Rate Alert and it has already paid off! I was floating a $175,000 deal from last evening. The market opened strong and the recommendation was to float until 1:00pm. At 12:34pm a Lock Alert was sent and the MBS Tracker jumped from -6 to -20. I went ahead and locked my deal and within 1 hour I had 4 investor re-prices for the worse. I ended up $357 to the good on the very 1st day with just 1 deal. That proved to be a great return on my investment." -- Frank Ruzicka from Conerstone Mortgage Inc.(1/13/2010)
Alert Tutorial - Understanding Your Alerts


Quality of Data: Refined Accuracy and Speed

Rate Alert is built on an institutional-level MBS trading feed. Unlike other services, Rate Alert tracks trading on all Conventional and Government Fixed Mortgage Backed Securities. Our service also filters out "trading noise". This means smaller less significant non-institutional trading desk contributions are ignored; creating the most stable, real-time depiction of how large lenders are viewing the MBS markets. Our system is mechanically tied to the market to automatically alert you in advance of potential Lender re-pricing with no potential for human error. And best of all its offered to you at a fraction of the cost of other services. That's why over ten thousand Originators protect their pipelines with Rate Alert!

Email Notification

Given that our system is mechanically tied to the MBS, pricing and alerts are sent automatically. The more emails you receive, the harder your service is working for you. On average you will receive four (4) alerts on any given day; more-so on volatile trading days. Additionally, you will receive daily lock advice. No one likes a full Inbox but we implore you to read every single alert to stay abreast of the markets. If you prefer to receive your alerts via SMS text messaging you can upgrade to Rate Alert Mobile.

Coupon Pricing vs. Interest Rates: The inverse relationship.

Securities are a stream of payments at a given coupon rate. If someone agrees to pay less for a given coupon rate, they ultimately end up with a higher return or yield on that trade. When markets weaken investors are less likely to bid, meaning lower coupon prices and higher yields or rates. So, when MBS markets soften, interest rates rise and Lender pricing worsens. Conversely, when MBS markets strengthen, more is paid for a given coupon rate and the yield is lower. When this happens, rates improve. Generally speaking, Mortgage Backed Securities are considered very conservative investments among investors. This means that bad economic news, or things that adversely affect the stock (equity) markets generally has a positive affect on MBS demand, meaning rates lower based on bad economic news. Bond pricing is measured in 1/100ths or Basis Points; referred to in your alerts as BPs. Some traders reference "ticks" with regard to pricing. Ticks are simply 1/32 rather than BPs which are 1/100ths. There are many technical facets that affect MBS pricing and interest rates throughout any given period. Rate Alert and David Shirmeyer keep you informed of the potential trend and market influences that affect Mortgage Rates. Rate Alert publishes daily AM and PM Lock Advice that boils these events and factors down to assist in accurate short term rate forecasting.

Not the Interest Rate, the Coupon Rate!

You'll see a coupon rate on every alert you receive. Understand that this is the BOND coupon rate, not an interest rate being offered by any particular Lender. This is the rate investors receive when buying or investing in the coupon. Alerts will be based on whichever coupon is most actively being traded; giving you the best picture of what the market is really doing.

AM Tracking Quotes: Your Most Critical Setting

Free, Basic and Executive Members can set their own AM Tracking Quote; to be e-mailed whenever a specific lender generally issues pricing each day. The tracking quote is your pricing “starting point” each day and gives you coupon pricing relative to the opening price (8am EST). Your Tracking Quote will be defaulted to 9:30 AM EST. This is generally when most lenders issue their morning pricing. But you can change this to coincide with the given behavior of any particular pricing desk in your Alert Controller. What makes the AM Tracking Quote so critical is actually quite simple. If a lender issues pricing at the same time as your AM Tracking Quote, subsequent market changes from this point forward in the day should offer the best indication how likely they might re-price and in which direction.

Types of Alerts

Rate Alert offers two Re-pricing Alert services. Both can be managed in your own personal Alert Controller. You can elect to receive Instant Re-pricing Alerts based on real-time market volatility which is overwhelmingly preferred by our Members. Instant Re-pricing Alerts are sent whenever MBS pricing moves enough to potentially affect lender pricing; usually in advance of re-pricing. Free members can choose Static Pricing Updates to be sent periodically throughout the day.

Static Pricing Updates – General re-pricing awareness

Static Pricing Updates are very handy for those who want a general idea of what to expect in the way of potential Re-pricing. In addition to receiving an AM Tracking Quote, Static Pricing Updates are defaulted to be sent at, 1:30pm with a Closing Bell at 5:30pm. These Updates give you live FNMA coupon pricing at these times. You can set your personal alert preferences on Static Pricing Updates in the Alert Controller to receive them more or less often. But remember, Instant Re-pricing Alerts are the true value of Rate Alert and most widely used by serious lending professionals.

Instant Re-Pricing Alerts – Most widely used in the industry!

Each morning you will receive an AM Tracking Quote; defaulted at 9:30am EST (when most lenders issue pricing). AM Tracking Quotes are the beginning reference point for MBS pricing movements. This means you will be alerted of changes that could affect pricing from this point forward. You can adjust the time of your AM Tracking Quote to mirror a particular Lender's pricing habits. For example, if your lender typically prices at 10:00am you can adjust accordingly in the Alert Controller. The AM Tracking Quote will give you the live pricing at that point with a comparison to the opening price (8am EST). Rate Alert uses 5:30pm EST as it's "Closing Bell" so your AM Tracking Quote will be compared against 5:30pm (EST) of the prior trading day. After your Tracking Quote, Rate Alert will notify you with Real Time Float Alerts or Lock Alerts. Float Alerts are sent whenever MBS pricing falls by enough to potentially adversely affect lender pricing by 1/8 in FEE (roughly 12 BPs). Conversely, Lock Alerts are defaulted to be sent whenever MBS pricing decreases enough to potentially improve lender pricing. You can adjust your tolerances in your Alert Controller to your desired level of sensitivity. These movement alerts give you current pricing and how it relates to the opening price along with the last three (3) alerts sent that day. Therefore, each Alert you receive offers comprehensive insight as to how the market is "behaving" that day.



Setting your Movement Alert Triggers

Basic and Executive members can set their Instant Re-pricing Alert tolerances in the Alert Controller. Some Originators want wish to be Alerted when pricing is at risk of moving by only .125 in fee while others are only interested in being notified when pricing can potentially move by .25 to .375. Adjusting your "Instant Alert Trigger" is quite easy to understand. Bond pricing is presented in hundredths or "Basis Points" (bps) while lender pricing generally moves in 1/8ths. 1/8 is equal to .125, 1/4 is equal to .25, 3/8 is equal to .375, 1/2 is equal to .50 in pricing and so on. Conversion to Basis Points is very easy to understand. Take your lender fee pricing and simply move the decimal 2 places to the right and you have the equivalent in bps. This means 1/8 in fee movement (or .125) is equal to 12.5 bps. So if you'd like to be Alerted whenever MBS pricing moves enough to affect lender pricing by .125 in fee, you would select 12 bps as your Trigger. If you want to be alerted when bond pricing moves by .25 you would select 24 bps. Sometimes it takes a bit of fine tuning to get your service exactly where you want it, but the system is designed to be as sensitive as you want with the benefit of instant notification.

Beating a Specific Lender's Pricing Desk

If you're not beating a specific lock desk, don't be discouraged. Remember; lender pricing is managed by human beings. And everyone has different philosophies with regard to pricing. Some lenders will be slow to re-price for the better if they are near operational capacity and they might be quick to increase for the same reason and so on. Conversely they may lower pricing quickly or be slow to increase if they are trying to fill a funding commitment. The first thing to remember is that your AM Tracking Quote is your most critical setting in your Alert Controller. Again: This is your reference point for all future MBS movements that day. If you start Tracking at the wrong time of day, even if you’re set at 12 bps you can still miss a lender re-price. And just because you receive rate sheets at a certain time of day, that does not mean this is when they set their pricing. Members are encouraged to experiment with earlier AM Tracking Quotes and increase or decrease your Trigger settings. Chances are you'll be able to beat your lock desk consistently after a week or 2 of testing and changing. The bottom line is that you need to understand that if you're receiving Lock or Float Alerts, the market is moving and you need to beware!

Imperfect Science

Predicting any given lender's pricing strategy is impossible. Every lender has different pricing goals and hedging practices. So you might find some lenders acting inconsistently with any given movement alert but rest assured when you get an alert, the market is moving and you need to prepare yourself. Don't leave your pipeline to chance. CLICK HERE to arm yourself with Rate Alert today!

What our members say:


"I can't afford the extremely high rates I have paid in the past for Brand X MBS service, but knew I needed something to protect me. I signed up yesterday afternoon for your FREE basic service, Which helped me to gain over a half point on a $240k loan. That gain will more than pay for your service. Thanks TBWS!"
Charles Etter

"Rate Alert has been fantastic in keeping me informed about market movement while away from the office throughout the day. The market commentary and daily charting are well worth the low-cost investment!"
Dave Santos
"Rate Alert PRO keeps me up to date with market changes. No matter where I am at I can keep in front of the daily MBS market. I get updates on today's market & when the next significant financial report is expected. Helps me position my clients to lock at the most opportune time! Well worth the money!"
Ethan Horm

"I made an extra $4,900 this week by locking when the rates moved. I advised clients when to lock & saved them on their payment, which resulted in 2 additional referrals from current clients. Rate Alert is like a built-in annuity system. Thank You for your support TBWS!"
John Angelo
"I have subscribed to Shirmeyer Reports for almost 10 years and find their information to be the best presented for us in the risk management side of the mortgage banking industry. There is so much data and commentary out there, but Shirmeyer finds a way to give us what we need to know in a common sense approach....".
Brian C., Ross Mortgage Co.
Leominster, MA 01453
"TBWS Rate alert is accurate, timely and informative. The timing is before other services out there in my opinion, it allows me to react more effectively to save and make money."
Kari Clouse
"I re-locked in 3 loans today when the market rates were great & I made an extra $3,700!! Thank You TBWS Rate Alert!!"
John Angelo