According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, average mortgage rates increased week-over-week last week. Rates were up across all loan categories, including 30-year fixed-rate loans with both conforming and jumbo balances, loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration, 15-year fixed-rate loans, and 5/1 ARMs. Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist, says the conflict in the Middle East impacted rates. “Mortgage rates continued to move higher, driven by increasing … [Read more...]

When an offer to buy a home is accepted and the contract to buy has been signed, that home’s sale is considered pending until it closes weeks later. During the ensuing weeks, there are several steps that need to be completed for the home’s sale to become final. But since most pending sales end up as closed sales, the National Association of Realtors tracks them each month, as they’re considered a good indicator of future home sales numbers. According to the NAR’s most recent Pending Home Sales Index, contract … [Read more...]

The National Association of Home Builders surveys builders each month, asking for their perceptions of the market for newly built homes. Their responses are scored on a scale where any number above 50 indicates more builders view conditions as good than poor. In March, the NAHB’s Housing Market Index rose one point from the month before, increasing to 38. Robert Dietz, NAHB’s chief economist, says uncertainty remains. “While the Freddie Mac 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged in February … the lowest since August … [Read more...]

New home construction is an important piece of the housing market puzzle. When the supply of homes for sale is low – as it has been for many years – building more homes is the quickest way to balance the market. These days, the effect can be seen in the regional differences found in home-price data. In the South, where home building has been more vigorous over the past few years, home-price increases have largely stalled. In the Northeast and Midwest, on the other hand, where there’s been fewer new homes built, … [Read more...]

How easy or difficult it is to obtain financing to buy a home depends on the availability of mortgage credit. Simply put, if you want a mortgage, there are times when credit is tight and times when it is looser. The Mortgage Bankers Association tracks mortgage credit each month with its Mortgage Credit Availability Index. When the index increases, credit has loosened and borrowers will have an easier time getting a loan. When it falls, credit is harder to obtain. In February, the index moved 1.1 percent higher. … [Read more...]

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, average mortgage rates were up across most loan categories last week from the week before. Rates rose for 30-year fixed-rate loans with both conforming and jumbo balances, loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration, and 15-year fixed-rate loans. Mike Fratantoni, MBA’s senior vice president and chief economist, says financial markets were responding to turmoil in the Middle East. “Financial markets were volatile last week amid the … [Read more...]

Sales of previously owned homes rose 1.7 percent in February, according to new numbers from the National Association of Realtors. The gains were modest and included all regions but the Northeast, where sales fell 6 percent from the month before. Dr. Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, says buyer demand has been muted despite recent affordability gains. “Despite the modest gain in home sales, actual housing demand remains muted relative to wage growth and job gains,” Yun said. “Inventory is growing, but sluggishly. … [Read more...]

Most conversations about housing affordability start with home prices. It’s the easiest part of the equation to understand and compare to years gone by. After all, anyone who bought a house even a few years ago can see that prices are higher today than they were then. Mortgage rates are usually next up. Higher rates aren’t quite as easy to quantify but everyone knows when rates go up so does their prospective mortgage payment. That’s why home prices and mortgage rates are always the top two topics in any talk about … [Read more...]

The inventory of homes for sale has been recovering for a while now. In fact, according to one analysis from the National Association of Realtors’ consumer website, it’s grown from year-before levels for 28-consecutive months as of February. But while there are certainly more homes for sale than there were, the pace of the recovery has started to cool. Danielle Hale, the website’s chief economist, says it also varies from one region to the next. “Inventory has improved for more than two years, but the momentum has … [Read more...]

Buying a home is primarily a financial transaction. And a big one. So, it makes sense that home buyers would approach the process with a clear head and a logical plan. After all, no one wants to buy a house they can’t afford or one they can’t stand. But while we’d likely all agree that home buyers should “use their head” when choosing a house to buy, nearly half of recent buyers say they followed their heart. In fact, 44 percent of surveyed buyers said so, with 41 percent saying they wish they’d been more rational … [Read more...]