Interest Rates Hold Steady as New Home Purchases Fall

By Mike Colpitts Restrained by a weak U.S. economy and lower demand for new home purchases, mortgage interest rates held steady after moving just one-basis point last week, according to Freddie Mac. The rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage remained at 4.50%. The fixed 15-year loan narrowly edged up two basis points to 3.69%. New… Continue reading Interest Rates Hold Steady as New Home Purchases Fall

Miami Home Sales Go Nuts

By Mike Colpitts Condominium and single family home sales are surging in Miami, once the nation’s epicenter of the real estate crash.  Condo sales jumped 46% in May and single family home sales rose 20% over a year ago. The surge in sales was led by 1,420 condominiums that changed hands during the month, which… Continue reading Miami Home Sales Go Nuts

Jumbo Mortgages to Get More Expensive

By Mike Colpitts Mortgages on the nation’s most expensive homes are about to get more costly. In October the government is expected to halt backing jumbo mortgages of more than $625,500 through Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, triggering higher interest rates and down payments. The change could also send home values lower in some high-end… Continue reading Jumbo Mortgages to Get More Expensive

Mortgage Company Executives Sentenced to Prison

By Kevin Chiu Two former mortgage company executives have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a fraud scheme involving more than $2.9 billion that contributed to the failures of their company and Colonial Bank. Desiree Brown, the former treasurer of Taylor, Bean and Whitaker was sentenced to six years in prison for… Continue reading Mortgage Company Executives Sentenced to Prison

Mortgages Biggest Spike in 3 Months

Demonstrating that there’s pent up demand for refinances and new home purchases despite erratic highs and lows in the marketplace, applications for home mortgages spiked to the highest level in three months as mortgage interest rates continued to fall. The biggest jump in the last quarter was led by refinancing, which gained 16.5% for the… Continue reading Mortgages Biggest Spike in 3 Months

Black Hills, South Dakota All the Rage

By Mike Colpitts Nestled amid the meadows of open range land and surrounded by a national forest, Canyon Springs Preserve offers the quiet privacy that millions dream of in the back country. It’s a quiet oasis with more than 50% conservation land bordered by national forest in Black Hills, South Dakota. Long before the real… Continue reading Black Hills, South Dakota All the Rage

Foreclosures Drop, Despite Turmoil

By Mike Colpitts Foreclosure filings dropped 2% in May as banks and mortgage servicing companies experienced turmoil as a result of legal problems dealing with foreclosures. Filings fell a third from a year ago. Formal foreclosure auctions, the last step in the painful foreclosure process, however, were scheduled against 89,251 U.S. residential properties during the… Continue reading Foreclosures Drop, Despite Turmoil

Spring Home Sales Decline

By Mike Colpitts Hindered by financing problems and weak consumer confidence, existing home sales declined in May, falling 3.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.81 million units, and are more than 15% behind last year’s pace, according to the National Association of Realtors. The slowdown in sales comes at a time when growing… Continue reading Spring Home Sales Decline

Mortgage Interest Rates Suddenly Jump

By Kevin Chiu Pushed by weakening economic data, mortgage interest rates, already near historic lows, jumped slightly for the week to 4.50% on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage, according to Freddie Mac. The jump of only 0.01 came after rates dropped for eight straight weeks. But rates declined slightly on other loans for the week.… Continue reading Mortgage Interest Rates Suddenly Jump