Category: Sales

Home Purchases Rise as Mortgage Rates Jump

By Mike Colpitts Mortgage applications to buy a home shot up more than 14% for the latest week reported by the Mortgage Bankers Association, indicating a major jump in home buying activity driven by near record low mortgage rates that are moving higher. Mortgage rates have slowly moved upward since hitting a record low of… Continue reading Home Purchases Rise as Mortgage Rates Jump

Home Sales Decline in October

Home sales declined in October after climbing for two straight months, according to the National Association of Realtors. Existing home sales are also nearly 26% below the pace a year ago when the federal tax credit was in effect. Sales on residential properties declined to a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.43-million for the month, a… Continue reading Home Sales Decline in October

Home Purchases Rise, while Refinances Decline

Home purchase applications for new mortgages rose slightly, while refinancing shrank for the third straight week, indicating that after months of homeowners refinancing mortgages to lower less expensive loans the surge in refinances may finally be coming to an end, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Refinances slipped 6.4% for the week ending Oct. 29th… Continue reading Home Purchases Rise, while Refinances Decline

Mortgage Applications Show Promise with Low Rates

Applications for new mortgages rose for the second consecutive week as applications for new home purchases and refinances moved higher on near record low rates, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Purchase applications grew by 3.9% for the week ending Oct. 22, while refinancing rose a more modest 3% over the previous week. The improvement… Continue reading Mortgage Applications Show Promise with Low Rates

Home Auctions Boom despite Sales Moratorium

By Kevin Chiu In Las Vegas, gamblers are refraining from putting down payments on homes in neighborhoods to find some of the best real estate deals at auctions. In Los Angeles want-a-be homeowners are checking home listings online to check prices, and then turning out to bid on auctions in search of bargains. And in… Continue reading Home Auctions Boom despite Sales Moratorium

First Home Price Decline in Year

Core Logic, a heavily viewed monitor of U.S. home prices said its home price index dropped for the first time in 2010 in August, sending prices just 1.5% lower for the year. However, the index also showed positive appreciation in more than a handful of states. The Core Logic index has had an unusually low… Continue reading First Home Price Decline in Year

Refinance Mortgages at Lowest Rates in Decades

Mortgage rates are near their lowest levels in decades, although they have risen slightly since hitting all time lows in mid-October. The rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage hit 4.19%, the lowest since 1951, according to the Federal Housing Administration. A small rise in rates has produced an increase in home refinances, which represents… Continue reading Refinance Mortgages at Lowest Rates in Decades

Home Sales Jump Second Straight Month

By Mike Colpitts Home sales jumped in September for the second straight month in a row, showing a recovery in the sale of existing homes, according to the National Association of Realtors, even while the inventory of homes listed for sale out-weighs market demand. The sale of single family homes, condos and townhouses reached an… Continue reading Home Sales Jump Second Straight Month