Mortgage rates are higher after the Federal Reserve released the internal notes of its September 22-23, 2009 meeting. Known as the ”Fed Minutes”, the report details the conversation and cross-currents that led to the Federal Reserve’s decision to vote “unchanged” on the Fed Funds Rate after its last meeting. The Fed Minutes are the lengthy companion to the [...]

For the seventh consecutive month, foreclosure activity in the U.S. was dominated by a tiny subset of states. As reported by RealtyTrac.com, more than half of September’s foreclosure-related activity occurred in just 4 states: California Florida Nevada Michigan These states represent just 22.05 percent of the total U.S. population. Overall, foreclosures are up 29 percent from [...]

Mortgage markets worsened last week as investors responded to a recovering global economy. Despite briefly touching their lowest levels since May, mortgage rates ended the week dramatically higher. It’s the second straight week that rates soared on a Friday. For several months, Wall Street has been in limbo; undecided whether the economy is truly showing [...]

According to the Freddie Mac weekly mortgage rate survey, the relative cost of a 5-year ARM is dropping versus its 30-year fixed-rate cousin. During the first 5 months of 2009, the products ran neck-and-neck. Today, they’re a half-percent apart. On a $200,000 home loan, that’s a difference of $60 per month. Adjustable-rate mortgages aren’t for everyone, but for the right [...]

Andrea Tlumacki was one of the “action takers”.  With the deadline of the $8000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit looming – it is important to have a game plan.  Many folks are focused on the Nov. 30th deadline.  Okay… but many are not “reverse-engineering” the calendar in order to determine milestones that one needs [...]

As covered on Fox 35 News: Email Chris your questions now. The government’s $8000 First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit available for Lake Mary Real Estate expires Nov. 30 — a short sixty-ish days from now. When you consider that in the “New World” of Lake Mary Real Estate financing, closings can take up to 45-60 [...]

An escrow account is a designated savings account into which funds get deposited for a specific purpose. With respect to real estate and home loans, escrow accounts are used to pay real estate tax bills and homeowners insurance payments. Escrow accounts are managed and disbursed by lenders. When a homeowner “escrows” his mortgage, along with [...]

Beginning November 17, 2009, the FHA will make it harder to qualify for its popular Streamline Refinance program. Available exclusively to homeowners with existing FHA home loans, the streamline program is meant to help homeowners reduce mortgage payments as simply as possible. As such, the program carries minimum eligibility requirements. In fact, the FHA Streamline Refinance is [...]

Buoyed by a generous tax credit, affordable homes, and low mortgage rates, the Pending Home Sales Index posted its seventh consecutive monthly gain in August. It’s the longest winning streak in the index’s history and the highest reading in 2-1/2 years. It’s also another signal that the housing market is in recovery. “Pending home sales” are [...]

Mortgage markets rallied for most of last week, but ended Friday on a sour note. After touching their lowest levels since Memorial Day, mortgage rates spiked to close out the week. Despite pricing getting worse by 1/4 percent Friday afternoon, however, mortgage rates still managed to fall for the second consecutive week. There were two main [...]