The latest Freddie Mac Economic and Housing Market Outlook shows the housing market moving in a positive direction. Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac’s vice president and chief economist, says “As we start 2014, the housing recovery continues its steady pace. House-price gains will likely moderate from last year’s pace but rise …
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) reports builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes fell one point to 56 in January. Rising home prices, historically low mortgage rates and significant pent-up demand will drive a continuing, gradual recovery in the year …
Housing Market Index Falls One Point, but Still Above 50 Read More
Increasingly, more mortgage borrowers are rising to the water’s surface instead of being underwater. According to RealtyTrac, 19 percent of all homes with mortgages were “deeply underwater,” meaning they owed at least 25 percent more on their mortgages than their homes are worth in December, a total of 9.3 million …
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/First American Leading Markets Index (LMI), which recently replace NAHB’s improving market index (IMI), indicates markets in 56 of the 350 major metro markets returned to or exceeded their last normal levels of economic activity, indicating a net gain of two over the previous …
According to official statistics compiled on behalf of the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Manufactured Housing Association for Regulatory Reform (MHARR) reports HUD-Code manufacturers produced 4,870 homes in November 2013, an increase of 11.5 percent over the 4,365 homes manufactured for the same period of …
Production of HUD Code Manufactured Homes Continues to Rise Read More
An analysis by Fannie Mae of its 2013 National Mortgage Survey reveals lower income borrowers are more apt to rely on advice from others, such as real estate agents and/or friends and family to determine what mortgage to choose and how much to borrow. They want loan terms and costs …
Online Shopping will Play Larger Role in Choosing Mortgages Read More
According to CoreLogic, home prices in the U. S. rose 11.8 percent in November, 2013 compared to Nov. 2012, marking the 21st consecutive month of yearly increases. “Our pending HPI (Home Price Index) projects that home prices will grow by 11.5 percent for the full year 2013,” Dr. Mark Fleming, …
According to Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, over 11 million renters with minimum wage incomes of $19,000 competed for 6.9 million affordable apartments in 2011. Renters with annual incomes of $15,000 must find a unit for $375 a month for it to be affordable. The center considers housing …
Single-family residential construction rose nearly two percent in November to a seasonally-adjusted rate of $175 billion, $3 billion more than in October, according to information derived by nationalmortgagenews.com from Census Bureau data. Compared to a year ago, spending on land development and home building rose rose almost 17 percent from …
Residential Construction Posts Highest Level in 5 1/2 Years Read More
Two thousand fewer Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week, moving the rate to a seasonally-adjusted 339,000, suggesting that hiring will remain steady and layoffs low. While employers have added an average of 200,000 jobs a month from August through November, driving the unemployment rate to a five-year low of …
Would-be investors buying foreclosed homes at auction and renting them are finding the trough is drying up, as auction prices have risen faster than rents, according to Core Logic, resulting in returns on investment (ROI) dropping. “It’s gotten so competitive that discounts at foreclosure are not where they were,” said …
The secondary market mortgage portfolio of Fannie Mae has continued to decline, as directed by the government-service enterprise (GSE) regulator. The $42 billion in mortgages it acquired in November represented a 14 percent drop from October. As reported by nationalmortgagenews.com, Fannie’s portfolio fell below $500 billion for the first time …
Following up on a story MHProNews published Dec. 27, 2013 regarding the building of a modular housing development in Estevan, Saskatchewan, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) announced that the Energy City’s vacancy rate had dropped to 0.0 percent in the spring of 2013, according to estevanmercury.ca, but a …
Housing Shortage Continues in Estevan, Saskatchewan, Canada Read More
As nationalmortgagenews.com informs MHProNews, 84 of the largest 300 housing markets have regained 100 percent of home values since the housing bubble, accounting for nearly 30 percent of tracked markets. Only nineteen markets had a decline in home values, while the remaining markets showed a rise of 50 basis points. …
The S&P/Case Shiller Home Price Indices reveal home prices in the 20 largest U. S. metro areas notched a 13.6 percent yearly increase, marking the highest gain since Feb. 2006 and the 17th month of annual increases. Thirteen cities earned a double-digit rise, according to worldpropertychannel.com. While average home prices …
S&P Case Shiller: U. S. Home Prices Highest in Nearly Eight Years Read More
Americans’ views of current economic conditions climbed higher than expected in December, gaining 6.1 points from the previous month to 78, hitting the highest consumer confidence level since April 2008, according to what Bloomberg reported on the Conference Board index. As unemployment falls and household finance rise, people become more …
According to vancouversun.com, modular housing and container housing will continue to expand in Vancouver in 2014, but will be joined by other innovative styles including duplexes, coach houses and stacked housing. Row houses offer the individuality of being distinct from a condo, but as a high-density form, fit well in …
CNNMoney has selected several cities where the housing market looks brighter than in other cities for the coming year. Oklahoma City has an unemployment rate of just 5.3 percent as of Nov., 2013, and home values have declined a mere one percent since 2009. Trulia reports 75 percent of homes …
Five U. S. Cities with Expected Top Housing Market Growth 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 …
According to nationalmortgagenews.com the average weekly rate for a 30-year mortgage is two basis points under 4.5 percent, making it just above one percent higher than one year ago. For a 15 year mortgage, the average rate is two basis points above 3.5 percent, making the mortgage rate just under …
30-Year and 15-Year Mortgages Slightly Above One Year Ago Read More
