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5 of the Best and Worst Mortgage Paying States

Delinquencies saw a reversal from last month’s performance, according to Wednesday’s mortgage performance report. Prepayments, which can be a good indicator of refinance activity, hit a record high. Take a look at the top and bottom performers in mortgage performance for May 2017.

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Mortgage Loan Apps Increasing

According to a recent report, mortgage loan applications are on the rise. Effective rates were up for 15-and 30-year fixed-rate mortgages as well as 5/1 ARMS. The Refinance Index hit its highest level since November 2016.

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Places of Interest—10 Hotspots for Million Dollar Homes

With housing prices continuing to climb, and the housing shortage steadily creeping forward, more metros are seeing a significant majority of their homes hit the million dollar mark. And while that doesn’t necessarily mean homebuyers get less for more, it does mean that “affordable” housing in certain highly desired areas of the country might come with an extra zero on its price tag. See what metros had the largest share of million dollar homes.

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Rising Rates and Finance Costs Leaving Homeowners Chained to Their Properties

A potential sales report released Tuesday showed an increase in existing-home sales for the Month of May despite the many issues facing home inventory. Industry professionals predict with the growing age of millennials and eventual starting of families, demand for housing will remain healthy. Rising rates and financing costs could be leaving existing homeowners as prisoners to their own homes. Keeping in mind the state of the market when looking at home sales at a particular time will give incite on whether it is a good time to buy or sell.

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Natural Food Stores Increase Home Appreciation

As real estate agents say, “location, location, location”—and that means if you’re located near a Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s, according to research. After studying the areas both before and after the stores were built, researchers found neighborhoods that previously were appreciating at normal or below normal levels started appreciating rapidly after opening. Either they know how to pick neighborhoods, or people truly love to live near Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s.

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Diversity and Success Work Hand in Hand

There are many factors that have affected homeownership rates after the 2008 financial crisis— specifically in regards to young adult social norms and changes in the housing market. The homeownership rate among 25- to 44-year olds has dropped 10 percent in the last decade and recent research shows this could be increased with closing the interracial gap in education and wealth. This research falls in line with statistics on diversity found in the corporate world.

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Long Road Ahead for GSE Profit Allocation Battle

The Government has been trying to figure out where the profits from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will go for over four years now, but according to a prominent hedge fund manager, it could go on another five more. When investors bought into the GSEs during the 2008 housing crash, they were under the impression that the allocation of profit would be amongst the shareholders. When the company changed their terms in 2012, a legal battle ensued that could last a total of 10 years.

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Cost of Living Rises in Tandem with Home Prices

Cost of living is on the rise across the country, according to a report released on Monday that lists the top 10 cities in the country with the fastest rate of increase in the cost of living over a one year period between 2016 and 2017. The study used two main metrics to rank the cities: the increase in the cost of living index—food, rent, utilities, and transportation costs. It also measures the increase in the amount of income that was needed to “live comfortably,” which is defined by the amount of money a household has to make in a year to account for necessities, savings, and discretionary spending.

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DCHFA Announces First of Many Closings in Assistance Program

Lower and moderate-income residents of Washington, D.C. are now able to afford homeownership thanks to the District of Columbia Housing Finance Agency’s (DCHFA) administering of the DC Housing and Community Development's Home Purchase Assistance Program (HPAP). Monday, the DCHFA announced their first closing under the program during Mayor Muriel Brown’s June Housing Bloom, a monthlong initiative showcasing how the public and private sectors are partnering to produce and preserve affordable housing and revitalize neighborhoods across D.C. After five years living in a small apartment with three children, the first family to receive assistance now owns a four level townhome.

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May Home Sales Hit Record High

Despite the housing shortage and April’s drop in home sales, the housing market not only returned to seasonally high sales, but set a post-recession record— the strongest home sales in the last nine years of the report. According to the National Housing Report, May sales increased 20.6 percent from April and 4.3 percent from May 2016. The only metro considered to be a buyers market in the U.S. for May was Miami, Florida, which was only 0.1 over a balanced market between buyer and seller.

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