In a widely anticipated move, U.S. Senator Richard Shelby (R-Alabama) was elected Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs for the 114th Congress, according to an announcement from Shelby's website Thursday.
Read More »High-LTV Programs Lift Mortgage Availability in December
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported Thursday that its Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI) edged up to a reading of 115.7 in December. The clear driver behind the increase was an announcement earlier in the month that both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are launching new 97 percent loan-to-value (LTV) mortgage programs for qualifying homebuyers, said Mike Fratantoni, MBA's chief economist.
Read More »Jobless Rate Falls to 5.6% as Payrolls Increase by 252K
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said Friday that the national unemployment rate was down to 5.6 percent by year-end 2014, bringing that number down to its lowest level since June 2008. Economists had expected the jobless rate would fall slightly to 5.7 percent and that non-farm payrolls would increase by 245,000.
Read More »FHA Cost Cut Draws Mix of Praise, Skepticism
A day after the White House announced plans to cut the Federal Housing Administration's (FHA) mortgage insurance premium by 50 basis points, politicians and commentators are still wrestling with the reduction's potential impact on the housing market, the mortgage insurance industry, and the agency itself.
Read More »Obama Cheers Recovery in State of the Union Preview
In a speech Thursday morning in Phoenix, President Barack Obama spoke of the progress the housing market has made since 2009 and measures his administration is taking to help everyone achieve homeownership.
Read More »Former HUD Policy Advisor Joins Freddie Mac’s Board
Real estate economist and former HUD policy advisor Raphael W. Bostic has been elected as a director on Freddie Mac's board of governors, according to an announcement from the GSE.
Read More »Mortgage Rates Sink to Pre-‘Taper Tantrum’ Levels
Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the average interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) fell to 3.73 percent (0.6 point) in the last week, a decline of 14 basis points from the end of 2014. The 30-year fixed started off last year at an average 4.51 percent.
Read More »Economist: Falling Oil Prices Could Hit Housing
In a report released Thursday, Trluia's Jed Kolko warned that falling oil prices—which have since July dropped by half from $100 a barrel—threaten worldwide oil-producing economies. At home, this drop could foretell a drop in home sale prices in the country's most oil-producing states, chiefly Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana.
Read More »Negative Equity Rate Approaches Single Digits in Q3 2014
According to CoreLogic's latest estimates, an additional 273,000 U.S. homes recovered to a positive equity position in Q3, bringing the total number of mortgaged homes with equity to approximately 44.6 million—about 90 percent of all mortgaged properties in the nation.
Read More »First Valuation Promotes Industry Vet to VP
Less than a year after he first joined the company as national account executive, First Valuation announced this week the promotion of Jordan Wilde to the position of VP of sales and marketing.
Read More »