Category: Housing Market

Short Sales Finally Speed Up

By Mike Colpitts The nation’s giant mortgage lenders will force banks and mortgage servicers to enforce new guidelines to speed up short sales. Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae will require lenders to respond to requests for short sales from mortgage borrowers within 60 days under a new mandate ordered by the Federal Housing Finance Agency.… Continue reading Short Sales Finally Speed Up

Kiddie Home Purchases Jump

By Mike Colpitts A tight mortgage market has triggered a jump in parents, grandparents and other relatives helping younger home buyers qualify for a home loan. Baby boomer parents have helped a son or daughter to purchase a home by co-signing for a mortgage, supplying down payments or purchasing a home outright in 20% of… Continue reading Kiddie Home Purchases Jump

Refinances Lead Mortgage Rebound

By Ryan Jackson Refinancing led a rebound in mortgage financing last week as homeowners applied for mortgages at the highest rate in at least two months, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Refinances jumped 13.5% from the previous week. Near record low mortgage rates got homeowners seeking refinances off the sidelines to take advantage of… Continue reading Refinances Lead Mortgage Rebound

Home Prices Forecast Higher

By Mike Colpitts Home prices in a larger number of cities are forecast to inflate in value in 2012 as many U.S. cities make inroads towards a housing recovery. Signs of progress are developing in a growing number of U.S. states, including hard hit Florida, Michigan and Mississippi. Improving conditions in many cities are attributed… Continue reading Home Prices Forecast Higher

Appreciation Forecast Tops 100+ U.S. Cities

For the first time in six years, more than 100 U.S. cities are forecast to experience housing appreciation by the end of the year. After strong evidence of growing economic recovery developed in North Carolina and Utah housing markets, the number of U.S. cities projected to inflate in home values hit 105. Driven by near… Continue reading Appreciation Forecast Tops 100+ U.S. Cities

Foreclosures Drop Two Straight Months

By Mike Colpitts Demonstrating the U.S. largest five banks are following rules agreed to in their $25 billion settlement with 49 state attorney generals, foreclosures saw a drop for two straight months in March as lenders increased efforts with home mortgage holders, according to RealtyTrac. The drop in foreclosure activity showed there were 198,853 filings… Continue reading Foreclosures Drop Two Straight Months

Mortgages Slow Despite Rate Drop

By Mike Colpitts Growing doubts about the U.S. economy and weakness in the job sector slowed mortgage application activity last week, despite a drop in key mortgage rates being offered by lenders, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The market composite index, a combination of both refinances and home purchase applications dropped 3.8%. But the… Continue reading Mortgages Slow Despite Rate Drop

California Real Estate Bust Offers U.S. Hope

By Mike Colpitts The boom bust cycle of California real estate holds historic lessons that every where else in the U.S. can learn from as the nation sustains the housing crisis driven by the sharpest foreclosure epidemic on record. California has seen home values drop an average of 43.7% since the housing crisis started in… Continue reading California Real Estate Bust Offers U.S. Hope

Homeowner Foreclosure Scams Spike

By Mike Colpitts Homeowner foreclosure rescue scams surged nearly 60% in the first three months of the year following the introduction of new federal foreclosure prevention programs, according to a national non- profit group working to help homeowners at risk of losing their homes. The Homeownership Preservation Foundation says fraudsters are busier than ever in… Continue reading Homeowner Foreclosure Scams Spike