More Buyers Eye Unlisted Homes as Options. As housing inventories shrink, more buyers are reportedly finding their perfect home in properties that haven’t even been listed on the market yet. “Such back-pocket deals used to involve mostly luxury homes where buyers and sellers wanted to keep the sale hush-hush,” The Star Tribune reports. “But lower-priced …
Category: Real Estate Tips
May 01
Home ownership falls to lowest rate in 15 years
Home ownership falls to lowest rate in 15 years. NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Home ownership in the U.S. fell to its lowest rate in 15 years during the first quarter as more delinquent borrowers lost their homes to foreclosure, forcing many to rent. The percentage of Americans who own their homes dropped a full percentage …
Apr 27
Has the Housing Market Finally Reached Bottom?
Has the Housing Market Finally Reached Bottom? If home buyers or home owners are waiting for the housing market to hit bottom before acting, they may have already missed it. “The crash is over,” Mark Zandi, chief economist for Moody’s Analytics Inc., told Bloomberg about the real estate market. “Home sales—both new and existing—and housing …
Apr 27
Fed Renews Vow to Keep Interest Rates Low
Fed Renews Vow to Keep Interest Rates Low. The Fed voted this week to continue its near-zero interest rates policy for the next quarter and likely much longer. The move will keep mortgage interest rates low in the coming months, if not years. In recent weeks, mortgage interest rates have hovered around record lows, which …
Apr 25
More Single Family Homes Turned Into Rentals
More Single Family Homes Turned Into Rentals. As the number of for-sale homes listed on the multiple listing service (MLS) drops, the number of single family homes up for rent has been gradually increasing, RISMedia reports. Single family home rentals are a growing business, as more investors buy up foreclosures at bargain prices and then …
Apr 20
Short Sales Start to Outpace Foreclosures
Short Sales Start to Outpace Foreclosures. Banks are agreeing to more short sales, and for the first time, short sale transactions are exceeding foreclosure deals, according to the most recent housing data from Lender Processing Services (LPS) Inc. In January, short sales made up 23.9 percent of home purchases, according to LPS. Meanwhile, foreclosures made …
Apr 18
Foreclosure Scams Rise Nearly 60%
Foreclosure Scams Rise Nearly 60% Mortgage foreclosure scams — which seek to dupe struggling home owners with offers to save them from financial troubles — have soared nearly 60 percent this year. Scammers are increasingly using federal programs, like refinance programs such as HARP and HAMP, to try to trick home owners, reports the Homeownership …
Apr 17
Fading ‘Fear Factor’ Among Home Buyers?
Fading ‘Fear Factor’ Among Home Buyers? The real estate market is thawing this spring. Following five years of dismal sales and falling prices, the housing market is starting to see a turnaround, according to housing surveys, agent reports, and economists. Home buyers are returning to take advantage of record housing affordability while investors are buying …
Apr 16
15-Year Mortgage Rates Dive to Lowest on Record
15-Year Mortgage Rates Dive to Lowest on Record The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage, often the top choice of home refinancers, reached a new all-time record low of 3.11 percent this week, Freddie Mac reports in this week’s mortgage market survey. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage also sank lower this week, hovering near it’s all-time low. “Fixed mortgage …
Apr 13
What to Do When a Home Lingers on the Market
What to Do When a Home Lingers on the Market. While the supply of homes has decreased from a 8.6-month supply to a 6.4-month supply in the last year, some home owners are still seeing their home linger on the market. When you can’t get a serious bite from a buyer, here are three interventions …
Apr 12
Buyer Urgency Improves, More See Now Good Time to Buy
Buyer Urgency Improves, More See Now Good Time to Buy More home buyers may jump off the sidelines this spring as they get more urgent about purchasing a home, fearing that home price and mortgage rate increases are on the horizon. Housing surveys in recent weeks have shown that more Americans are seeing now a …
Apr 06
Opportunity in Vacation Homes
More Buyers See Opportunity in Vacation Homes. Some buyers are calling the vacation-home market the “perfect storm,” — falling home values, low mortgage rates, and increased affordability — which is prompting more opportunity in the second-home market. The National Association of REALTORS® reported last week that vacation home sales increased 7 percent in 2011 over …
