According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, demand for loans to buy homes moved 5 percent higher last week, despite rising mortgage rates. Average rates were up across all loan categories, including 30-year fixed-rate loans with both conforming and jumbo balances, loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration, 15-year fixed-rate loans, and 5/1 ARMs. It was the second consecutive week mortgage rates rose. Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist, says rates have … [Read more...]

New home construction numbers can be volatile. That’s certainly been true over the past few months. Take, for example, recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. In February, the numbers showed housing starts up almost 11 percent – a sign builders were feeling optimistic and beginning to ramp up construction as the spring market approached. Then, according to the most recently released numbers, housing starts fell nearly 15 percent in March. That’s a big drop. The … [Read more...]

Home builders know the housing market. They have to if they hope to be successful. After all, knowing where and when buyers are looking to buy is their business. That’s why the National Association of Home Builders conducts a monthly survey tracking builder confidence in the market for newly built homes. The survey is scored on a scale where any number above 50 indicates more builders view the market as good than poor. In April, the NAHB’s Housing Market Index held steady at 50, unchanged from the month before. … [Read more...]

The number of available homes for sale is currently lower than normal. There are several reasons for this. Among them, elevated mortgage rates get a lot of the attention. After spending years near historic lows, rates have increased and it’s made some homeowners hesitant to sell and lose their rock-bottom rate. This is likely true in some cases and may be contributing to the lack of available homes. But there are, of course, many other factors – one of which was revealed by a recent survey of older Americans. Among … [Read more...]

Mortgage credit availability isn’t fixed. Depending on current lending standards and loan programs, there will be times when it’s easier to get a mortgage and times when it’s more difficult. The Mortgage Bankers Association’s Mortgage Credit Availability Index tracks whether credit is loosening or tightening each month on a scale where any increase indicates access to credit has grown. In March, the index rose 1.1 percent. It was the third consecutive monthly improvement. Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy … [Read more...]

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, average mortgage rates increased last week from the week before. Rates moved higher for 30-year fixed-rate loans with both conforming and jumbo balances, loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration, 15-year fixed-rate loans, and 5/1 ARMs. Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and chief economist, says the economy is resilient and it’s keeping rates higher. “Mortgage rates moved higher last week as several Federal Reserve officials … [Read more...]

A “million dollar” city is one where the typical home is worth $1 million or more. These days, there are more of them than you might think. In fact, according to one new analysis, there are 550, up from 491 last year at the same time. The growing number of million dollar cities is largely due to the low inventory of homes for sale. Too few available homes has been driving prices higher for years and has continued to even after mortgage rates rose from historic lows. But while price increases have helped create more … [Read more...]

Fannie Mae’s monthly Home Purchase Sentiment Index is based on a survey of Americans which asks for their opinion on buying/selling a home, mortgage rates, prices, their job and financial security. The index hopes to capture Americans’ general feeling about the housing market. In March, it found respondents slightly more optimistic than the month before. In fact, the share who say it’s a good time to buy was up 4 percent and the share who say it’s a good time to sell rose 2 percent. Doug Duncan, Fannie Mae’s senior … [Read more...]

When you buy a home, you’re buying into a community. That means paying property tax to help better that community. Property taxes help cover the bill for things like schools, police and fire departments, road repairs, and libraries. Necessary stuff, for sure. But though they pay for things we need, taxes are never popular. And now, according to ATTOM Data Solutions, they’ve risen. In fact, according to ATTOM’s analysis of taxes on 89.4 million single-family homes across the country, the average tax increased 4.1 … [Read more...]

It’s been a while since the market favored home buyers. With inventory hovering near historic lows, home sellers have reaped the benefits of bidding wars, buyer competition, and spiking prices for most of the past several years. Now things may be changing. The number of homes for sale remains low but recent improvements have conditions looking better for buyers than they’ve been in years. In fact, according to a recent analysis from the National Association of Realtors’ consumer website, price cuts on homes for … [Read more...]