government assistance mortgage

Where You Find Speculators, You May Also Find Failures

November 14, 2007

This morning, RealtyTrac released its Q3 2007 foreclosure data for the United States. The leading cities for foreclosures are: Stockton, CA (1 per 31 households) Detroit, MI (1 per 33 households) Riverside/San Bernardino, CA (1 per 43 households) Fort Lauderdale, FL (1 per 48 households) Las Vegas, NV (1 per 48 households) Sacramento, CA (1 […]

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The Week In Review (November 13, 2007) : What To Watch For

November 13, 2007

The Dow Jones Industrial Average and NASDAQ shed 4.1% and 6.5%, respectively, last week. Normally, this would be good news for mortgage rates because investors tend to look for “safe havens” in bond issues, but instead, just treasuries benefited last week.  Mortgage bonds were left in the dust. Mortgage rates finished to the upside after […]

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The Simple Math Of How Mortgage Rates Are Born

November 9, 2007

We talk a lot about how mortgage bonds are the driving force behind mortgage rates but we never get into the math of it.  So, to help our understanding of the subject, let’s delve a little deeper. Here’s the (very simplified) math behind it: If you pay $100 today for a $6 annual interest payment […]

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Mortgage Rates Fall For ARMs Faster Than For Fixed Rate Mortgages

November 8, 2007

After running neck-and-neck for several months, interest rates for fixed-rate mortgages and adjustable-rate mortgages are finally diverging. Despite pricing worse than its fixed-rate counterpart throughout much of August and September, ARMs are now close to 0.375 percent lower for conforming products sold through Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. This equates to roughly $25 per month per $100,000 […]

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It’s Not Your Imagination : Getting A Home Loan Is More Challenging For Everyone

November 7, 2007

If it feels like mortgage approvals are harder to come by than in years past, that’s because it is. And we’re not just talking about sub-prime mortgages (for which the market has nearly vanished in just 12 months). According to a story on Marketwatch, mortgage guidelines are more challenging for everyone to meet — gold-star […]

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It Ain’t Easy Being Green–or is it??

November 7, 2007

No, I am not talking about the song by Kermit the Frog, I am talking about a recent insert in the Wall St. Journal entitled “Handicapping the Environmental Gold Rush” spoke about the benefits of investing in Green Real Estate. According to McGraw-Hill Constructions “2006 Green Building SmartMarket Report,” Green buildings generate 3.5% higher occupancy rates, […]

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The Week In Review (November 05, 2007) : What To Watch For

November 4, 2007

As we saw last week, the economy is simultaneously hot and cold.  This makes for a strange ride on Wall Street because stocks and bonds tend to move on emotion rather than on fact. This “mob mentality” is one reason why mortgage rates have bounced up and down so much lately. For example, we saw […]

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Why Driving Extra Miles For Cheaper Gas May Be A Waste Of Money

November 4, 2007

With gas prices up 37% nationally since this time last year, Americans have grown accustomed to driving a little bit further just to find a “gas bargain”. But, is it worth it? Based on today’s national average gas price of $3.00 and assuming a 15-gallon fill-up and a 20 miles-per-gallon vehicle, a car owner would […]

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It’s A Terrific Time To Revisit Your Mortgage Rate

November 2, 2007

If you bought your home in 2007 and your mortgage is a conforming home loan, you may be able to take advantage of  the current mortgage market conditions and lower your mortgage rate. As of this morning, mortgage rates are near their lowest levels of the year. Of course, not every conforming borrower is eligible. […]

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How To Save Money By Choosing A Better

October 31, 2007

When a loan officer locks a mortgage rate for you, that rate is tied to an expiration date. The expiration may be 30 days, or 75 days, or 90 days, or more into the future, but so long as the rate is “locked”, the bank is committed to delivering that rate to you at your […]

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What Is The Fed Funds Rate?

October 31, 2007

The Federal Open Market Committee adjourns from its two-day meeting this afternoon and is widely expected to lower the Fed Funds Rate.  This does not mean that mortgage rates are being lowered, too. The definition of Fed Funds Rate from the Federal Reserve: The federal funds rate is the rate charged by one depository institution […]

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The Week In Review (October 29, 2007) : What To Watch For

October 29, 2007

Strong earnings from Apple, American Express, Microsoft and Boeing helped to keep markets in balance last week after reports of weak business spending and poor housing data (again). The available data doesn’t seem to match corporate earnings reports and that is giving investors fits. Mortgage rates bounced around last week on the lack of conviction […]

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Is A Fed Funds Rate Cut Good News Or Bad News? It Depends On Your Perspective.

October 26, 2007

The Federal Open Market Committee is widely expected to lower the Fed Funds Rate next week. For holders of credit cards and home equity lines of credit, this is good news. Both of these financial products feature interest rates tied to Prime Rate. Prime Rate is tied to the Fed Funds Rate. When the Fed […]

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Monthly Reiteration: Real Estate Is Not A National News Story

October 25, 2007

The Wall Street Journal used a lot of ink this morning on September’s Existing Home Sales data, including the chart below.  It’s frightening to the lay person who may not know how to interpret data like this. Remember: real estate is local. Yes, on a national level the number of homes for sale in increasing […]

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Appraisals are as much art as science

October 24, 2007

The number of home valuation Web sites continues to grow. A simple Google search for “How much is my home worth?” shows 119,000 results and seems to get larger month-over-month. For home sellers, these programs can give a false sense of security (or insecurity!) about at what price a home should be listed for sale. Computer […]

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How The Stock Market Is Directing Traffic For Mortgage Rates

October 23, 2007

As we talked about yesterday, the stock market appears to be directing traffic for the bond market. Monday was a flat day for stocks, and it was a flat day for bonds, too.  Mortgage rates idled. Tuesday, with no economic data hitting the wires, market participants will be looking for direction elsewhere. Some likely candidates […]

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Just Because You Can Borrow From a 401(k) Plan Doesn’t Mean That You Should

October 19, 2007

According to the Wall Street Journal, the number of Americans taking loans against their 401(k) plans is increasing because most plans allow participants to borrow funds to purchase a home or to avoid foreclosure. But just because the avenue is there, though, doesn’t mean that borrowing from a 401(k) is a good idea. Here’s why: When you […]

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How Japan And China Can Impact The Mortgage Rate On Your Home

October 17, 2007

Mortgage rates are determined by the prices of mortgage bonds; this, we’ve covered before.  As bonds prices go up, bond rates come down. And the price of a mortgage bond is a matter of Supply and Demand. The greater the demand for a bond, the higher its price.  High demand for bonds is one reason […]

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How Mortgage Calculators Can Be Misleading

October 16, 2007

Mortgage calculators are ubiquitous on real estate-related Web sites but that doesn’t mean that they’re helpful. See, Internet-based mortgage calculators take three figures into consideration when determining “how much home can you afford”. Income Debt Downpayment/Equity Next, the calculator figures in your downpayment, multiplies your income by a factor of .38 and spits out an […]

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Retail Sales Data Gives Mortgage Markets Something To Chew On

October 15, 2007

Until this morning, mortgage markets had been somewhat dormant over the course of the week.  There was no new data for traders to chew, digest and/or spit out.  Mortgage rates sat flat because of it. Then, at 8:30 A.M. ET, the Commerce Department released Retail Sales data for September.  Mortgage rates are headed higher this morning on […]

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