Category: Blog
Mortgage Rates Continue Breakout Move Higher
Mortgage rates continued higher today, after breaking a very long, very flat streak following last week's jobs numbers. Like yesterday, today's culprit was stronger-than-expected economic data, this time from the national Institute for Supply Management (yesterday's was the regional Chicago ISM). The
First-Time Home Buyers Losing Market Share
The market share of first-time homebuyers continued to decline this year, slipping one percentage point to 38 percent and down from the long-term average of 40 percent. This is one of dozens of homebuyer characteristics included in the National Association of Realtors'® (NAR) 2013 Profile of Home Buyers
Adjustable Rate Resets no Longer a Looming Threat
One of the big worries in the early days of the housing crises were the large numbers of adjustable rate mortgages originated during the boom years that were scheduled to reset in stages over the upcoming years. What would happen to home prices, delinquencies, and foreclosures once these loans, many of whi
Mortgage Rates Rise; Highest Since Shutdown
Mortgage rates rose briskly today, bringing them to their highest levels since the worst few days of the government shutdown nearly 3 weeks ago. Several lenders were only minimally worse at first this morning, but most released revised rates in the early afternoon. Some borrowers may be looking at a 1
Third Quarter Home-ownership Lowest in 18 Years, but Higher Than Q2
Homeowner and rental vacancy rates were essentially flat during the third quarter of 2013. The Census Bureau reported on Tuesday that the vacancy rate for residential rental property was 8.3 percent, up 0.1 percentage points from the second quarter and 0.3 percentage points lower than in the third quarter o
Seven things that kill your home sale
Your home can be immaculate, in a great neighborhood and priced right. But when a prospective buyer walks in, they can be persuaded to turn and walk out. Obviously, they’re motivated; otherwise they wouldn’t have wasted the trip.If your home has any of following six problems, you may see the buyers t
Refinancing Applications Back to Early Summer Levels
There was a big jump in the volume of applications for mortgage refinancing last week as customers reacted to the lowest interest rates since early summer. Applications for home purchases also increased slightly during the week ended October 25. The Mortgage Banker Association's (MBA) Market Composite Index
Mortgage Rates Start Lower, but Higher After Fed Announcement
Mortgage rates began the day lower, with several lenders releasing their best rate sheets in nearly 5 months. The day progressed well in the secondary mortgage market with MBS prices (the "mortgage backed securities" that most directly affect rates) rising steadily into the Federal Reserve's policy announce
Surprisingly Unchanged After Bumpy Ride
The past two days have been quite something for MBS markets--not in any meaningful way, but certainly frustrating. Reason being: BOTH days have opened at higher levels than every single session since last Tuesday's NFP and BOTH have closed below the lowest closing levels from any of those days. I some
FHA Loan With a 580 Credit Score: What to Know
An FHA loan with a 580 credit score may fit HUD's credit-score baseline for maximum financing, but the score alone does not establish approval. A lender must review the full application and confirm its own acceptance standards. What does the FHA 580 threshold mean? For borrowers with traditional credit, HUD's m
Does checking your credit hurt your score?
One of the myths surrounding personal credit scores is that checking your own credit reports and scores will make your score go down. That myth has been around for nearly as long as credit reporting agencies. This myth hurts home buyers because it discourages them from checking their credit report in order to kn
Home Prices Rise Most since 2006; Pace to Slow
Home Prices continued higher for most of the metropolitan areas examined in the most recent quarterly report by the National Association of Realtors® (NAR). Median prices for the report were based on closings in the 3rd quarter. The number of Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) with higher prices incr