Monthly Archives: April 2008

The Fed lowered the Fed Funds Rate by a quarter-percent to 2.000% this afternoon. Because it is tied to the Fed Funds Rate, Prime Rate also fell by a quarter-percent. Prime Rate is now 5.000%. Holders of home equity lines … Continue reading →

The Federal Open Market Committee adjourns from its two-day meeting at 2:15 P.M. ET today. Markets expect the Fed to lower the Fed Funds Rate by 0.250 percent in its press release but it’s not what the Fed does that … Continue reading →

RealtyTrac released Q1 2008 foreclosure statistics and the data follows an interesting statistical phenomenon most commonly known as the “80/20 Rule”. The 80/20 Rule states that 80 percent of the effects come from 20 percent of the causes. In this … Continue reading →

Mortgage markets lost ground last week on inflation concerns and a general feeling that “the worst may be over” on Wall Street. As investors moved money into the stock market, mortgage rates ticked higher for the second straight week. The … Continue reading →

Newspaper headlines rarely tell the full story and today’s papers provide a terrific example. From the Baltimore Sun (and others): New-home sales lowest since 19918.5% March decline exceeds forecasts; prices also tumble As always, there’s more to the story than … Continue reading →

More than 130 million Americans will receive tax rebates this year as part of Congress’ $168 billion economic stimulus package. Payments begin in about two weeks and range from $600 for individuals to $1,200 for couples, plus an additional $300 … Continue reading →

The National Association of REALTORS released its Existing Home Sales report for March 2008. An “existing home” is one that is not considered new construction. A sub-headline in the report showed that the median sales price of all homes sold … Continue reading →

As mortgage lenders limit how much money they will lend and to whom, co-signing home loans is growing in popularity. “Co-signing” a home loan is when a third-party — usually a parent or relative — promises to make repayments to … Continue reading →

The S&P 500 added 4.3 percent last week — more than during all of 2007 — in what was a good week for the economy and a bad week for mortgage rate shoppers. After Friday’s close, mortgage rates were higher … Continue reading →

In the world of real estate, Days On Market is the number of days between when a home lists for sale and when it goes under contract. It is often abbreviated as DOM. Average Days on Market is a similar … Continue reading →