Many borrowers believe that when they purchase a property by obtaining mortgage financing, they also own their home. Technically speaking, full ownership on a property only happens once the mortgage loan amount has been paid in full. To break this down in more detail, there are a few components of a mortgage: A Promissory Note is [...]

Mortgage rates are dropping this morning on weaker-than-expected Retail Sales data from December. Lower rates means more bang for your home-buying buck. Excluding motor vehicles and parts, December’s “ex-auto” sales receipts were down roughly $500 million from November. Analysts had expected receipts to grow. The relevance of Retail Sales to home affordability isn’t obvious, but [...]

Like real estate, it appears that foreclosure activity is a local phenomenon, too. As reported by RealtyTrac.com, more than half of all foreclosure-related activity in 2009 came from just 4 states: California Florida Arizona Illinois More than 1.4 million filings made in 2009 are attributed to the above states. Furthermore, each ranks in the Top [...]

As the housing market improves across the country, certain cities are emerging as relative bargains.  Some areas, like Miami, were hit hard by the recession, and other areas are buoyed by good school systems and strong labor markets. In this 5-minute video from The Today Show, 10 cities are highlighted for their home prices.  And [...]

Despite the headlines, it’s important to remember that December’s jobs report wasn’t all bad news. Sure, the economy shed 85,000 jobs last month and the Unemployment Rate failed to dip below 10%, but for home buyers and rate shoppers , the news was just fine. The soft employment data led mortgage rates lower, making homes [...]

Data was sparse through 2010′s first trading week last week, setting the stage for a week of momentum trading. In up-and-down trading, mortgage pricing improved overall but the best rates of the week didn’t last long. Rates improved Monday and Tuesday as an oversold market corrected itself to better price points.  Then, in anticipation of [...]

FHA home loans are federal assistance mortgages made by lenders, and backed by the government. The FHA doesn’t make loans to homeowners by federally-qualified lenders. By all accounts, FHA home loans are surging in popularity. 2006, FHA insured 3.3% of all mortgages made Q2 2009, FHA insured 19.2% of all mortgages made A major reason [...]

Both mortgage rates and home affordability took a turn for the better Wednesday after the Federal Reserve released its December 15-16, 2009 meeting minutes. The Fed Minutes is a follow-up piece to the post-FOMC meeting press release. But whereas the press release is succinct and to-the-point, the minutes are lengthy and often meandering. As a comparison, [...]

Just one month after touching a 3-year high, the National Association of Realtors® Pending Home Sales index plunged in November.  A “pending” home sale is a home that is under contract to sell, but has yet to close. The 16 percent drop marks the first retreat in Pending Home Sales since January of last year. [...]

More positive signals from housing — home values are still on the rise. According to the Federal Housing Finance Agency, after posting its first quarterly increase since 2007 this past September, the Home Price Index rose by another 0.6 percent in October. Prices are up in 4 of the last six months. But before we [...]