By Mike Colpitts A progressive Washington based group is lobbying to reduce mortgage principal in an effort to help all homeowners, and Democratic members of the Senate Banking Committee are urging the reductions. The Center for American Progress is pushing for mortgage reductions on Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae held mortgages and is expected to… Continue reading Mortgage Reductions May Help All Homeowners
Category: Financing
Mortgage Slowdown Resumes Despite Low Rates
By Kevin Chiu Led by a slowdown in mortgage refinancing activity, mortgage applications slowed for the sixth time in seven weeks this past week to keep the housing market at a snails pace, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The disappointing news came after an increase in mortgage applications the prior week. The slowdown was… Continue reading Mortgage Slowdown Resumes Despite Low Rates
Mortgages Pull Back as Rates Rise
For the second week in a row applications for home mortgages declined, led by a drop in home refinancing. A 4.6% pull back in refinances demonstrates the softer mortgage market, which seems likely to repeat a year similar to last year of slower activity, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association survey. A hike in mortgage… Continue reading Mortgages Pull Back as Rates Rise
New Program Targets Underwater Homeowners
By Mike Colpitts A new program designed to identify underwater homeowners who may qualify to refinance mortgages has been put into operation by one of the nations largest real estate technology firms. The program targets homeowners who are more likely to walk away from their underwater mortgages. CoreLogic, which evaluates hundreds of segments of the… Continue reading New Program Targets Underwater Homeowners
Refinances Dive, Despite Low Mortgage Rates
Home refinances took their sharpest dive since last July as homeowners hoping to refinance current mortgages dried-up, despite near record low mortgage rates, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The drop-off in mortgage applications for refinancing decreased 9.3% from the previous week, indicating that an Obama administration program offered through Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae… Continue reading Refinances Dive, Despite Low Mortgage Rates
Investors Home Buying Binge Rages
By Mike Colpitts Investors accounted for almost 1 in 4 home purchases during the month of January, up to 23% of purchases, demonstrating that the home buying binge by investors is controlling a large portion of the U.S. housing market as bargain hungry investors attempt to cash in on deals. The figure was up 2%… Continue reading Investors Home Buying Binge Rages
Record Low Mortgage Rates Drive Refinances
By Mike Colpitts Refinances jumped 13% in the last week to trigger a major jump in mortgage refinancing as consumers took advantage of record low mortgage rates, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The drop in rates, however, seemed to do little to get more home purchasers off the fence to take out applications for… Continue reading Record Low Mortgage Rates Drive Refinances
Refinancing Picks Up Speed on Lower Rates
By Mike Colpitts Refinancing picked-up speed as homeowners applied for lower mortgage rates in greater numbers to obtain lower mortgage payments even as home purchase financing slowed, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Almost half or 43% of those refinancing home mortgages chose shorter 15 or 20 year loans during the fourth quarter of 2011,… Continue reading Refinancing Picks Up Speed on Lower Rates
Refinances Surge on Record Low Mortgage Rates
By Mike Colpitts Bolstered by a jump in home refinances, home mortgage applications surged higher last week on to nearly a record breaking pace. The Mortgage Bankers Association Refinance Index increased 9.4% from the prior week. The average contracted mortgage rate on a fixed 30-year loan dropped to 4.05%, the lowest in the history of… Continue reading Refinances Surge on Record Low Mortgage Rates
Underwater Refinances Show Jump
By Mike Colpitts The Obama administration’s long criticized Home Affordable Mortgage Program (HAMP) showed a major improvement last week, pushing refinances for underwater homeowners higher, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. “Although total application volume dropped on an adjusted basis relative to last week, refinance volume remains high, with survey participants reporting that the expanded… Continue reading Underwater Refinances Show Jump