May . 17 . 2012 / Thursday
Buying a home has reached its most affordable level in more than two decades.
Nearly 78% of homes sold during the first quarter were affordable to those earning the national median income of $65,000, according to a report released Thursday by the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo. Read More… May . 17 . 2012 / Thursday
Buying a home just got even cheaper as interest rates on both 30-year and 15-year-fixed-rate mortgages set record lows for the third week in a row.
The 30-year fixed mortgage, the most popular mortgage product, dipped by 0.04 percentage points to 3.79%, according to a weekly survey by Freddie Mac. Last year, 30-year loans averaged 4.64%. The new low can save borrowers $50 a month for every $100,000 borrowed. Over a 30-year term, that comes to $21,874. Read More… May . 17 . 2012 / Thursday
Foreclosure filings in April fell for the third straight month to the lowest level since July 2007.
Total foreclosure activity for April, including default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions, was down 5% from March, according to RealtyTrac. Read More… May . 15 . 2012 / Tuesday
Bank of America is offering some struggling homeowners payments of up to $30,000 if they sell their homes in a short sale and avoid ending up in foreclosure.
Under the plan, Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500) will offer homeowners so-called relocation payments of between $2,500 and $30,000 if they sell their home in a short sale. In short sale deals, the sale price of the home is less than what the seller owes the bank. Read More… May . 10 . 2012 / Thursday
Mortgage interest rates hit new lows this week as both the 30-year and the 15-year fixed-rates fell, according to a weekly survey by Freddie Mac. It was the second consecutive week that rates broke records.
The 30-year, the most popular mortgage product, fell by 0.01 percentage points to 3.83%. Last year at this time, it stood at 4.63%. The new lows can save borrowers $46 a month for every $100,000 borrowed. Over a 30-year term that comes to more than $16,000. Read More… Apr . 24 . 2012 / Tuesday
While sales of new homes slowed in March, government figures for the previous two months were revised sharply higher Tuesday, pointing to a solid winter rebound in the housing market.
The Census Bureau reported that sales of new homes in the month came in at an annual pace of 328,000 when adjusted for the season. That was down 7.1% from the 353,000 sales pace in February -- but that February figure was revised up by 40,000 from the reading issued last month. Read More…