http://www.mortgagechiliblog.com Lake Mary Real Estate and Longwood Real Estate - Mortgage Chili Blog Fri, 19 Mar 2010 12:46:40 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Homes are more affordable in Heathrow and across the nation as the housing market emerges from a slow winter season with mortgage rates still near 5 percent. Soft housing and low rates are an excellent combination for home buyers but whereas home values rise with a gradual pace, mortgage rates ... http://www.mortgagechiliblog.com/inflation-mortgage-rates/ Single-family Housing Starts idled last month, dropping just 3,000 units from the month prior, or 0.2%. According to the Commerce Department's report, February marked the 8th straight month in which Housing Starts straddled the half-million marker, dating back to June 2009. This is a different slant on the Housing Starts ... http://www.mortgagechiliblog.com/housing-starts-single-family-steady/ Today, the Federal Open Market Committee voted 9-to-1 to leave the Fed Funds Rate unchanged, in its target range of 0.000-0.250 percent. In its press release, the FOMC noted that the U.S. economy "has continued to strengthen" and that the jobs markets "is stabilizing".  It also said that business spending ... http://www.mortgagechiliblog.com/fomc-march-16-2010/ The Federal Open Market Committee adjourns from a scheduled 1-day meeting today, its second of the year.  The FOMC has held the Fed Funds Rate in a target range of 0.000-0.250 percent since December 16, 2008, and the voting members of the Fed are expected to vote "no change" again ... http://www.mortgagechiliblog.com/fomc-meeting-rate-lock-strategy/ Home maintenance is an ongoing project. There's always something to do around the house, or something to fix. The problem is, you may not have the time, or the skills, to get it done yourself. In this 4-minute ... http://www.mortgagechiliblog.com/15-minute-fixes-home-projects/ The Federal Housing Finance Agency has extended the government's Home Affordable Refinance Program by 12 months. HARP's new end date is June 30, 2011. Originally known as Making Home Affordable, HARP aims to help Florida homeowners refinance their mortgage who may otherwise be ineligible because of falling home values. There ... http://www.mortgagechiliblog.com/harp-extended-june-2011/ According to foreclosure-tracking firm RealtyTrac, foreclosure filings topped 300,000 for the 12th straight month last month as 1 in every 418 U.S. homes received a foreclosure filing. It's a small improvement from January and a just 6 percent increase over February 2009. On a per-capita basis, foreclosure density varied ... http://www.mortgagechiliblog.com/foreclosures-february-2010/ If your mortgage is set to adjust this year, the smart move may be to let it. Today's conforming mortgages are adjusting lower than ever before -- as low as 3 percent.  It may not be what you expected when you signed for your ARM several years ago. The ... http://www.mortgagechiliblog.com/arms-adjust-lower-mortgage-rate/ In November, Congress extended and expanded the First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit program to include a subset of "move-up" buyers -- homeowners that have owned and lived in their home for 5 of the last 8 years. The credit ranges up to $8,000 per buyer. There's now just 7 weeks left ... http://www.mortgagechiliblog.com/tax-credit-2010/ You could call it the Ultimate Geek Gift for an iPhone-toting friend -- or even for yourself. It's a set of 16 coasters made to look like iPhone application icons. Made by Brazilian firm Meninos, the coasters are constructed from sturdy, medium-density fiber plywood and are coated in vinyl.  They're ... http://www.mortgagechiliblog.com/iphone-coaster/