Fixed-rate mortgages continued to drop this week, lowering borrowing costs for home buyers.“Following a mild decline last week, the 10-year Treasury yield rose 1 basis point this week,” says Sean Becketti, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “The 30-year mortgage rate similarly remained relatively flat, falling just 1 basis point to 3.89 percent. Mortgage rates are continuing to hold at low levels amidst ongoing economic uncertainty.”Freddie
For-sale-by-owners tend to sell their homes for lower prices than homes sold through traditional agents via the MLS, and in many cases below the average differential represented by the prevailing commission rate, according to a new study by Collateral Analytics.The study examined the price differences between homes sold through traditional agents versus those sold by FSBOs from 2016 to the first half of 2017.Some homeowners may be tempted to tr
Mortgage rates dropped to the lowest averages since November, but that did little to entice home buyers and refinancers last week.The Mortgage Bankers Association reports that total mortgage application volume—including for refinancing and home purchases—eked out just a 0.1 percent week-over-week increase. Volume is nearly 22 percent lower than a year ago.The drop in loan demand is coming at a time when mortgage rates are falling, which usual
Homeowners should be feeling richer. At the end of the second quarter, more than 14 million U.S. properties were considered equity rich. (That means the combined loan amount secured by the property was 50 percent or less of the estimated market value of the property.)Nearly 320,000 properties joined the “equity rich” category during the second quarter over the first quarter. Further, the number of equity rich properties is now up more than 1.
Contradicting previous research, new study finds FSBOs sell at discountKey Takeaways Agents tend to achieve higher sales prices for properties than comparable FSBO listings, enough to offset their commission fee, according to a recent analysis.Academic research has often cast doubt on the value of real estate agents, but a new study will come as music to their ears.It suggests that homeowners will net roughly the same proceeds whether they sel
Housing shortage in America might intensify, says NAR chief economistKey Takeaways In July, new residential construction starts slipped down to a rate of 1,223,000 units -- a 4.1 percent month-over-month decrease.June’s housing starts report was heralded as “welcome news” by National Association of Realtors (NAR) Chief Economist Lawrence Yun, who said increasing residential construction was the key to lowering home prices.This month, howeve
National family median income rose to $71,529, but it's still not enough to keep up with rising home pricesKey Takeaways Home prices rose 6.2 percent quarter-over-quarter to $255,600 -- a new peak.The housing market saw a series of ups and downs in Q2 2017, the majority of which were largely driven by low inventory unable to meet the demand of would-be buyers. This imbalance drove home prices to rise 6.2 percent, easily eclipsing the previous Q3
Median home prices in the second quarter eclipsed a record high set in 2016, jumping 6.2 percent year over year as the inventory crunch continues to push property values higher, according to the National Association of REALTORS®.The national median price for an existing single-family home was $255,600, up from $240,700—the previous high—in the second quarter of 2016, NAR reported Wednesday. Prices for single-family homes rose in 87 percent o
Foreign buyers continue to outspend domestic buyers in the U.S.From April 2016 to March 2017, properties purchased by foreign buyers had a median price of $302,290. That is 30 percent more than the median purchase price of $235,792 for all existing homes sold in the U.S. during that period, according to the National Association of REALTORS®’ 2017 Profile of International Activity in U.S. Residential Real Estate.In a further examination of ave
A 20 percent down payment is no longer the norm. In the past year, 1.5 million borrowers purchased their homes with down payments of less than 10 percent, according to Black Knight Financial Services. That marks a seven-year high.A growing number of home shoppers are financing more than 90 percent of their home purchase.“The increase is primarily a function of the overall growth in purchase lending, but, after nearly four consecutive years of d
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