By Mike Colpitts U.S. mortgage giants Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae will be halted from providing mortgages on homes that hold home resale fees under a new federal mandate. The decision, ordered by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which oversees both government backed lenders, was ordered late Tuesday. It was contained in a proposal made… Continue reading Federal Housing Agency Orders Halt to Home Resale Fees
Category: Housing Market
Underwater Homeowners Receive Little Aid
By Mike Colpitts Underwater homeowners struggling to pay mortgages are getting little aid from an Obama administration program aimed at helping upside down mortgage holders at risk of losing their homes nearly a half a year after the program went into effect. There have been just 40 U.S. homeowners helped by the FHA short refinancing… Continue reading Underwater Homeowners Receive Little Aid
Running Out of Time to Stay in Their Home
By Grace Lyons In 1982 my husband and I bought our home and struggled to keep it because of very high interest rates at the time. Our combined wages could not keep up with the high cost of living. Today we are still living in the same home after close to twenty nine years. In… Continue reading Running Out of Time to Stay in Their Home
Silicon Valley in Recovery
By Mike Colpitts Led by high tech giant Apple, California’s Silicon Valley is coming back to life after reaching the slowest real estate downturn in its existence. Apple, the second largest U.S. company based on stock market value, acquired Hewlett Packard’s old commercial office setting in Cupertino, and other large tech corporations are leasing offices… Continue reading Silicon Valley in Recovery
Mortgage Rates Drop Lower
By Mike Colpitts Driven by a spike in Treasury prices, mortgage rates saw a major drop lower as worries over a Greek default and the Federal Reserve’s dim economic outlook rattled financial markets. Rates paid to investors seeking the safest investment in Treasury bonds reached the lowest yield in four months Monday, hitting 1.84% on… Continue reading Mortgage Rates Drop Lower
Stung by Losses Banks Call Loans
By Kevin Chiu Stung by huge losses, banks are calling loans on businesses and home mortgages in efforts to protect their businesses and keep regulators at bay. A total of 157 banks failed last year, and were taken over by the FDIC, the most since the U.S. Savings and Loan Crisis ended in 1992. Homeowners… Continue reading Stung by Losses Banks Call Loans
Mortgage Rates Rise, May Go Higher
By Kevin Chiu Mortgage rates rose for the second week in a row on fixed rate loans, and short term rates also increased, according to the Freddie Mac survey. The average rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage rose to 4.8%, six basis points higher over the previous week amid concerns that rates for many… Continue reading Mortgage Rates Rise, May Go Higher
Four States Cities Lead Foreclosure Crisis in 2010
By Mike Colpitts Four states cities accounted for 19 of the top 20 metropolitan U.S. foreclosure centers in 2010 as the foreclosure crisis gained momentum in the majority of the nation, despite moratoriums put in place by five major national lenders, according to RealtyTrac. California, Florida, Nevada and Arizona cities accounted for the most foreclosures.… Continue reading Four States Cities Lead Foreclosure Crisis in 2010
Markets Forecast to Rise with Housing Inflation
In a turning point that demonstrates U.S. housing markets are making a recovery, Housing Predictor is forecasting that local markets in seventeen states will experience housing inflation in 2011. The states are dominated by the Mid-west and most Northern regions that were less affected by harmful new mortgage lending products during the real estate bubble,… Continue reading Markets Forecast to Rise with Housing Inflation
Mortgage Volume Slows as Applications Decline
By Mike Colpitts Refinancing applications fell to the lowest level in more than a year and mortgage applications for new purchases also declined for the week, demonstrating mixed signals for the housing market, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The composite index, a measure of loan application volume showed a decline of 12.9% on a… Continue reading Mortgage Volume Slows as Applications Decline