Mortgage Rates Drop to New Low Again

Mortgage rates dropped to another record low at 4.42% for the week, the ninth straight week the 30-year fixed rate mortgage has moved lower or stayed the same, according to Freddie Mac. The 5-year adjustable rate mortgage remained at the same rate it was a week ago. The 30-year mortgage moved down just .02% for… Continue reading Mortgage Rates Drop to New Low Again

Refinances Lead Mortgage Surge

A huge surge in the volume of refinancing applications, triggered by record low mortgage rates may indicate improving market conditions are developing. The combined Mortgage Bankers Association index increased 13% over the previous week. Refinancing rose a mammoth 17.1% for the week to reach its highest level since May of 2009 as all-time low mortgage… Continue reading Refinances Lead Mortgage Surge

Foreclosures Rise in July

By Mike Colpitts Foreclosure auctions rose in July, but were down from their peak 14% for the month on residential properties nationally, according to the Realty Trac. However, all initial foreclosure notices issued against properties for the month showed a sharp increase. It was the seventeenth consecutive month total foreclosure activity topped 300,000 units. All… Continue reading Foreclosures Rise in July

Mortgages Applications Decline as Refinances Slow

Despite record low interest rates, mortgage applications declined for the first time in weeks last week, including an unexpected slow down in applications for home refinances, the Mortgage Bankers Association said. Applications declined 4.4% on a seasonally adjusted basis from a week ago, and a whopping 5.9% on refinancing alone. The decline marks a slowdown… Continue reading Mortgages Applications Decline as Refinances Slow

Gulf Oil Spill to Drop Homes Only 10%

By Mike Colpitts Gulf coast homes and condos on the immediate coastline in the path of the BP oil spill in Alabama and Florida will suffer only a 10% drop in average values as a result of the oil disaster, according to a new Housing Predictor forecast compiled after more than three months of research.… Continue reading Gulf Oil Spill to Drop Homes Only 10%

Mortgage Loan Fraud Declines

By Kevin Chiu Mortgage loan fraud has declined 25% since its peak in 2007, according to a survey conducted by Core Logic, a real estate research firm that monitors more than 3,000 local U.S. housing markets. The study was released on the heels of the largest Justice Department crackdown in history on perpetrators of mortgage… Continue reading Mortgage Loan Fraud Declines

Crash in Housing Relief Program

The Michigan housing relief program is battling technological failures to help homeowners. The first day unemployed homeowners could apply for relief to pay their home mortgages, the telephone lines and computer systems were so over-loaded they crashed. Housing Finance Agencies in five states are getting $1.5-billion in relief from the Hardest Hit Fund program started… Continue reading Crash in Housing Relief Program

Mortgage Rate Record Lows

Mortgage rates dipped a marginal one-hundredth of one percent, averaging 4.56% on a 30 year fixed rate loan for the week, the lowest since records have been kept, according to Freddie Mac. The decline for the third straight week marks a weakening in consumer confidence over the economy and housing. Home builder confidence is also… Continue reading Mortgage Rate Record Lows