Home buyers this year have faced higher prices, more competition, and rising mortgage rates. In short, it's been a challenging year. But that's not to say it isn't a good time to buy a house. There are many reasons to be optimistic about homeownership, in fact – and a few that put current conditions in perspective. Take mortgage rates, for example. According to Freddie Mac, the long term average is 8.16 percent, which means today's rates are still low historically. Also, home equity is increasing. In fact, it's up … [Read more...]

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Applications Survey, average mortgage rates increased for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with both conforming and jumbo balances last week. Loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration were virtually unchanged. Nevertheless, the increases led to a decline in mortgage activity, with both refinance and purchase demand lower than one week earlier. Joel Kan, the MBA's vice president of economic and industry forecasting, told CNBC slowing mortgage demand is in … [Read more...]

If you're a potential home buyer with an eye on home prices, there's good news and bad news in the latest results of the S&P Case-Shiller Price Indices. On the one hand, home price increases may be finally slowing down. Year-over-year numbers show the rate at which prices increased was lower than the month before. This, combined with news that there are more homes being listed for sale, is an encouraging sign that affordability conditions may soon begin to turn in favor of buyers. On the other hand, however, … [Read more...]

The story of this year's housing market has mostly been about inventory. With a lower number of homes for sale and high buyer demand, competition and prices have been on the rise, making conditions more challenging for home buyers. But, if the most recent Pending Home Sales Index from the National Association of Realtors is any indication, things may finally be changing. That's because there's an increasing number of homes being listed and some evidence that the worst is behind us. Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief … [Read more...]

If you were asked to name a hot home design trend, you probably wouldn't guess log homes. And yet, new data from the National Association of Home Builders shows last year's sales of log and timber homes were 56% higher than in 2012. That's a big jump. So what's behind the increase? Well, for one thing, today's log and timber homes don't resemble what might come to mind when thinking of an old-fashioned “log cabin.” According to the NAHB, “Revenues from log and timber frame homes have risen at a faster pace than … [Read more...]

New homes are generally more expensive than existing homes. There are a couple of reasons for this. One is that everything in a new home is brand new and you're going to pay a premium for that. This is really no different than paying more for an older home that's recently undergone an extensive renovation. New things cost more than used things. The other reason new homes are generally higher priced is that builders, for the past several years, have been primarily building houses for the high-end of the market, due … [Read more...]

When the economy was struggling following the financial crisis and housing crash, interest rates were kept low to encourage economic activity. However, as the economy and job market have improved, the Fed has gradually begun to raise rates. This is part of the reason mortgage rates are higher than they were last year at this time. But, though there has been a slight upward trend, more recently, rates have been somewhat flat. Joel Kan, the Mortgage Bankers Association's VP of economic and industry forecasting, told … [Read more...]

Searching for a home to buy can be frustrating. Mostly because it's not always easy to find a house in the right neighborhood with every one of the features you dreamed of. If you find the perfect kitchen, the house will have too few bedrooms. Or you'll find a house with the right number of bedrooms and the kitchen will be too small. In other words, buying a house means compromise. And, in today's market, buyers are having to make difficult choices. For example, a new analysis from the National Association of … [Read more...]

New numbers from the National Association of Realtors show sales of existing homes were basically flat in June and are now 2.2 percent lower than they were at the same time last year. And yet, buyer demand has been high all year. So why aren't more homes selling? Well, according to Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist, it's because there are too few homes for sale. “The root cause is without a doubt the severe housing shortage that is not releasing its grip on the nation's housing market,” Yun says. “What is for … [Read more...]

Maintenance is a big part of being a homeowner. Put simply, owning a home means having a never-ending to-do list and, depending on your level of know-how, some of it will require the help of a professional. These jobs can range from major renovations such as putting an addition on your house to basic upkeep and repairs like having ducts cleaned and fixing leaks. Essentially, you are your home's temporary caretaker and how well you take care of it will affect not only how comfortable and enjoyable your home is to … [Read more...]