Here’s some good news for the struggling US housing market: Thanks to the European debt crisis, mortgage rates are at historic lows.
The current average rate for a 30 year fixed loan is 4.87 percent, according to Bankrate.com. That’s the lowest rate for the 30 years since Bankrate started keeping track 25 years ago.
Even jumbo loan […]
Holding an Open House? Offer Your Sellers These Tips
May 20, 2010—Have you prepared your clients for an open house? Do they know how to get their home ready? Here, we take a look at some essential open house tips—whether it’s winter or summer—that are sure to help your sellers make their home look the best […]
March Pending Home Sales increased 5.3% from February, and were 21% higher than one year ago at this time. The Pending Home Sales index, which measure sales of existing homes based on contracts which have been signed but not yet closed, is a leading indicator for the housing sector. The index provides guidance for future […]
April 19, 2010—(MCT)—Latasha Hall never envisioned herself a homeowner. But by the end of the month, she will be. Just in time.With the soon-to-expire tax credit for first-time buyers as an assist, the single mother plans to close on a $166,650 three-bedroom house in Clifton Heights, Pa. “If it hadn’t been for the credit, I […]
April 23, 2010—Buyers responding to the home buyer tax credit and favorable affordability conditions boosted existing-home sales in March 2010, marking the beginning of an expected spring surge, according to the National Association of Realtors.Existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, rose 6.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate […]
As Congress begins to debate how to reform government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Bank System, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)
On Sunday April 11, 2010, 1:00 pm EDT
Even as prospects for the American economy brighten, consumers are about to face a new financial burden: a sustained period of rising interest rates.
That, economists say, is the inevitable outcome of the nation’s ballooning debt and the renewed prospect of inflation as the economy recovers from the depths […]
April 13, 2010—(MCT)—When it comes to saving for retirement and building a portfolio to last a lifetime, most Americans are way behind the eight-ball.
April 1, 2010—(MCT)—A national index of home prices rose unexpectedly in January 2010, with California cities posting strong gains, but some experts warned that the nation’s struggling housing market could be headed for another dip.The closely watched Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller index of 20 metropolitan areas rose 0.3% from December on a seasonally adjusted basis. That […]
March 29, 2010—Last month, Zillow reported in their Q4 Real Estate Market Reports [1] that five of the 143 markets the company covers were in the throes of a “double dip,” meaning home values
