As national elections loom in New Zealand, boosting the country’s housing stock is becoming a major battleground issue, according to stuff.co.nz. While both major parties agree more affordable housing is needed, their solutions differ. The Labour party’s approach is the government funding of 100,000 homes over the next ten years, …
With the extension of long-term benefits for the unemployed still in abeyance in Congress, the California Employment Development Department (EDD) has notified 220,000 recipients of long-term benefits that their aid will end in two weeks. This prompted Keep Your Home California to remind homeowners under the Unemployment Mortgage Assistance Program …
California Offers Assistance Paying Mortgages to Long-Term Unemployed Read More
According to the Philadelphia Federal Reserve, new residential building permits rose significantly from November 2012 to November 2013 in Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Compared to the same month period in 2012, the growth in all three states was in double digits, as housingwire.com tells MHProNews. While permits were 21 …
Residential Building Permits Rise in DE, NJ and PA Read More
Following a story MHProNews posted Dec. 10, 2013 regarding an increased sales tax that will be imposed on manufactured and modular homes sold in North Carolina, charlotteobserver.com reports the tax is being raised to 4.75 percent Jan. 1. The industry is slowly recovering from a slowdown exacerbated by the Great …
Sales Tax on Manufactured Homes Rises in North Carolina Read More
Predictions for 2014 from nationalmortgagenews.com forecast home sales will rise from 5.5 million this year to 5.9 million in 2014, home price appreciation will drop from 11 percent to six percent in 2014, and the 30-year mortgage rate will rise 50 basis points to five percent. The purchase-refinance loan origination …
While most of the modular homes in Australia are for coastal and rural retreats, more architect-designed, multi-million-dollar prefabricated homes are being trucked 500 to 600 miles and craned into place, sometimes costing over $100,000 just for transport. While the prefab market in Australia is relatively immature, representing only about one …
While lenders who make qualified mortgages that must conform to certain criteria have greater legal protection than those loans that do not, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) published a factsheet that states, “We will stand with borrowers and homeowners to ensure financial institutions treat them properly. Borrowers who fall …
Home prices rose 0.5 percent in October over the previous month, according to nationalmortgagenews.com, as prices climbed 8.2 percent year-over-year, based on data from the Federal Housing Finance Administration (FHFA). Investors have reduced the inventory of distressed properties as mortgage rates rise, and gains in employment are attracting more home …
Traditional Home Buyers Returning to Market as Investors Leave Read More
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reports sales of newly-built single-family homes fell 2.1 percent in November to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 464,000 units. According to data released by the U S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), this follows an upwardly …
The Commerce Department reported that sales of durable goods spiked 3.2 percent in November, well above the two percent economists had predicted. A measure of planned business spending for capital goods marked its biggest gain in nearly a year in November, which indicates growth into next year. While sales of …
Housing Market Continues to Support Economic Recovery Read More
While the previous story MHProNews posted questions the rationale of the Federal Housing Finance Administration’s (FHFA) desire to raise certain mortgage fees for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac-backed mortgages, incoming director of the FHFA, Mel Watt, says he will postpone the fees and possibly cancel them altogether. Set to take …
Incoming FHFA Director Mel Watt to Sideline Planned Fee Increase Read More
Industry groups are questioning the Federal Housing Finance Administration’s (FHFA) raising of fees as a means to encourage private capital back into the mortgage market. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) president Steve Brown says homebuyers are being charged excessive fees “due to questionable agency goals.” The FHFA intends to …
Will Raising Mortgage Fees Bring Back Private Capital? Read More
According to dailyfinance.com, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Warren Buffett is as good a CEO as he is a savvy investor. He bought Clayton Homes, the largest producer of manufactured homes (MH) in North America, in 2003 because Clayton incentivizes its dealers, rewarding them by splitting the profit 50/50 with the …
Wise Warren Buffett Bought Motivating Clayton Homes Read More
Marking the third consecutive month of falling sales, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reports sales of previously-owned homes edged down 1.2 percent to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 4.9 million homes sold. The combination of rising mortgage rates, low inventory of available homes and tight credit have contributed to …
Announcing financial results for its fiscal year ending Nov. 2, 2013, Nobility Homes, Inc. reports sales increased 17 percent to $18,525,950 as compared to $15,834,971 for the same period last year. Net income after taxes for the year rose to $747,106 from $49,759 FY 2012. Diluted earnings for the year …
Nobility Homes’ Revenue and Income Rises in 2013 Versus 2012 Read More
After going through a nasty foreclosure, architect Macy Miller of Boise, Idaho did not want to deal with a mortgage or banks, and built her own 196 square foot modular home on a flatbed truck for $11,400. Doing most of the work herself, the home has a king-size bed, an …
In November housing starts rose 22.7 percent to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 1.09 million, according to data from the U. S. Department of Commerce, the highest rate since Feb. 2008. Additionally, Bloomberg.com informs MHProNews permits for new housing hit close to a five-year high, indicating construction will continue …
Housing Starts: Growing Demand Trumps Higher Mortgage Rates Read More
During Q3 2013 an additional 791,000 U. S. homes returned to positive equity as home values continue to rise, bringing the number of mortgaged residential properties with equity to 42.6 million. The number of homes remaining in negative equity fell from 7.2 million at the end of the second quarter …
Senators Joe Donnelly (D-IN) and Tom Coburn (R-OK) introduced S. 1828, The Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act in the Senate as a companion to House Bill 1779 of the same name that protects the ability of manufactured home owners to buy, sell and refinance homes. The new guidelines issued …
The National Association of Home Builders reports builder confidence rose four points in Dec. to 58, where any number over 50 indicates builders see the market as good rather than poor. The Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) is based on current sales conditions, sales expectations and traffic of prospective …
