Generally speaking, it would take an extraordinary circumstance to cause the number of mortgage applications to rise in this country despite an increase in mortgage rates.

But that’s exactly what happened in the past week, according to an article from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Why would this happen?  My suspicion is that in some parts of the country, real estate prices are becoming too good to ignore.  And when that happens very little can get in the way of an improving market.

We’re not at the bottom nationwide.  But many markets are already past their bottom and are already increasing. (Don’t believe me? Check out Real Estate Investors: The Time Is Now.)  Real estate is on sale now, and the sale won’t last forever.