May 10, 2011 Home values showed the sharpest quarterly declines since 2008, falling 3% in the first quarter this year, according to Zillow’s real estate market report. Zillow said national prices were down 8.2% year-over-year to $169,000. Since peaking in June 2006, home values have fallen 29.5%. Out of the 132 markets covered by Zillow, [...]
Category | Home Purchase
April 1, 2011 As analysts expected, the unemployment rate decreased slightly to 8.8%. While the employment numbers still have a long road to travel before getting to lower ground, the economy is slowly showing signs of life. Unfortunately, this comes at the cost of interest rates. The lower this number goes, the higher the rates [...]
Tuesday, March 8, 2011 The Obama Administration is pushing for closure on the mortgage crisis, and it may be coming at the expense on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. These two quasi-corporate government sponsored enterprises are being blamed for much of the mortgage meltdown due to their elasticized credit guidelines throughout the sub-prime gold rush. [...]
Monday, March 7, 2011 The first Friday of every month always has me on edge. As I’m watching CNBC at around 7:30 am, I’m tensed up as I await the employment report knowing the results can wreak havoc on the bond market thus moving mortgage rates. Not that I’m a proponent of a high unemployment [...]
The freefall continues. According to many leading forecasters, home prices are expected to drop further in the first half of this year, then rebound later in the year. The expectation is that unemployment will slide a bit, sparking purchases in housing. Forecasters are looking for a 5-8% increase in home sales by the end of [...]
November 10, 2009 Although most folks choose to escrow their real estate taxes and homeowner’s insurance monthly, I am often asked whether or not this is wise. As long as you have a minimum of 20% equity in your property, you actually have the choice of “waiving escrows” or paying the taxes and insurance on [...]
May 18, 2009 If you are thinking about purchasing a new home, don’t wait until you find the perfect home to get prequalified! Make sure your credit is healthy and find out how much you can qualify for before you find the home of your dreams. This helps insure that you not only choose a [...]
