Loan Applications Rise as Rates Reach Record Lows. More home owners and purchasers took advantage of locking in last week’s record low rates. Mortgage Loan Applications — which include both for refinancing and purchase — rose 2.8 percent for the week ending Sept. 21, the Mortgage Bankers Association reports. Mortgage Loan Applications for home purchases, an indicator …
Category: Real Estate Tips
Sep 27
Home Prices Continue to Rise Over Last Year’s Levels
Home Prices Continue to Rise Over Last Year’s Levels More housing reports released on Tuesday showed Home Prices Continue to Rise. The Federal Housing Finance Agency reported that U.S. home prices increased 3.7 percent from a year ago in the 12-month period ending in July. FHFA’s home price index is now at about the same …
Sep 27
Credit Scores Can Differ From What Lenders Use
Credit Scores Can Differ From What Lenders Use When reviewing their credit scores, one in five consumers are likely to receive a different credit score from what a creditor will use to price a loan, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The discrepancy has the agency concerned. Lenders use credit scores to help determine …
Sep 25
How High Will Housing Prices Be in 2016?
How High Will Housing Prices Be in 2016? A quarterly survey of more than 100 economists shows growing optimism for the real estate market when it comes to housing prices. The majority of the economists surveyed say they expect home prices to steadily increase for the next four years. The economists surveyed expect Housing prices to …
Sep 25
How to Avoid Common Closing Snafus
How to Avoid Common Closing Snafus Closing delays have reportedly been a rising problem in the real estate industry, from properties not appraising at the agreed upon selling price to financing problems. Columnist Dirk Zeller, a real estate author and sales coach, says that documentation and verification is a common sticking point at closing. “Lenders …
Sep 24
Housing recovery… A good week for it!
Housing recovery… A good week for it! The housing recovery showed signs of strengthening this week, as two new reports showed home sales and prices on the upswing. Existing-home sales have soared nearly 8 percent from a year ago, the National Association of REALTORS® reported this week proving the Housing recovery is on the upswing. …
Sep 21
Home Buyers Canceling Contracts?
Home Buyers Canceling Contracts? With a high number of Home Buyers Canceling Contracts, even as the housing market picks up and sales are on a rise, new data from Capital Economics shows. Nearly 18 percent of signed contracts on existing home sales were canceled from May through July. What’s more, 36 percent of real estate …
Sep 21
Home building Bounces Back in August
Home building Bounces Back in August. Home building Bounces Back for single-family homes was at its fastest pace in more than two years during August, as the new-home market continues on in recovery mode. The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that single-family housing starts soared 5.5 percent, marking the best pace since April 2010. Construction of homes …
Sep 19
REO Sales – Fannie Takes Bigger Grip Over them.
REO Sales – Fannie Takes Bigger Grip Over them. Fannie Mae announced that it will no longer be using third-party management vendors and sales teams to help manage its REO properties. The mortgage giant will now be handling the management of its REO inventories through its in-house staff. “We have reduced our REO inventory from 162,489 …
Sep 19
Foreclosures Continue to Fall From Last Year’s Levels
Foreclosures Continue to Fall From Last Year’s Levels Foreclosures are down 13 percent from a year ago when they had reached a 17-month high, RealtyTrac reports. Foreclosures include default notices or scheduled foreclosure auctions. Many experts had been predicting a foreclosure wave to occur this summer with foreclosures reaching elevated levels. But the “wave” has …
Sep 18
Strategic Defaulters targeted by ‘Mortgage Cops’
Strategic Defaulters targeted by ‘Mortgage Cops’. The Office of the Inspector General at the Federal Housing Finance Agency is trying to find strategic defaulters and collect on what they still owe. Strategic defaulters are often underwater home owners who walk away from their mortgages even though they still have the means to pay. Experian has …
Sep 17
Fed Moves to Keep Mortgage Rates Low
Fed Moves to Keep Rates Low. The Federal Reserve announced Thursday that, in an effort to re-ignite economic recovery, it was taking aim at mortgage rates — a move that will likely take rates even lower from their current record lows. The Federal Reserve announced it will purchase $40 billion of mortgage-backed securities that will …
