Monthly Archives: August 2010

Mortgage Rates May Be Low, But They’re Tough To Pin Down — Especially This Week

Mortgage rates would have been volatile this week. The presence of Labor Day just piles on. If you have a chance to lock something favorable and within your budget, consider doing it. Continue reading

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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week : August 30, 2010

When Chairman Bernanke talks, markets listen. His comments about the U.S. economy helped fuel a late-Friday surge in mortgage rates last week. Continue reading

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Home Affordability Rankings For 225 Metropolitan Statistical Areas

With home prices holding firm and mortgage rates still dropping, home affordability is reaching new heights. According to the quarterly Home Opportunity Index as published by the National Association of Home Builders, more than 72 percent of all new and … Continue reading

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New Home Sales Drop In July — Just Like Existing Home Sales

One day after the National Association of Realtors released the softest Existing Home Sales report since 1995, the U.S. Census Bureau released a similarly-weak New Home Sales report. Americans bought just 276,000 newly-built homes in July. That marks the fewest … Continue reading

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Existing Home Sales Plummet In July; Home Buyers Gain Leverage

The number of home resales plunged by 1.4 million units in July, according to the National Association of Realtors

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Bank Mortgage Lending Policies Appear To be Easing

The tightening in mortgage-lending policies that characterized the last 3 years appears to be slowing. According to the Federal Reserve’s quarterly survey of senior bank loan officers, roughly 1 in 10 lenders added mortgage qualification hurdles between April and June. … Continue reading

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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week : August 23, 2010

Mortgage markets stalled last week in back-and-forth trading as Wall Street grappled with weak housing data, falling builder confidence, and worsening jobs numbers nationwide. Because markets were volatile, rate shopping was challenging. Conforming mortgage rates did managed to make a … Continue reading

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Mortgage Rates Make New Lows For The 9th Week In A Row

Another week, another new low for conforming mortgage rates. In fact, this week marks the 9th time in a row it’s happened. Mortgage rates are (again) at their lowest levels in history. The data comes from the Freddie Mac, a … Continue reading

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How Much Should You Expect To Pay In Mortgage Closing Costs?

How much does a mortgage cost? The answer depends on where you live. But no matter which your locale, chances are strong that you’ll pay more for a mortgage in 2010 as compared to 2009. According to Bankrate.com and its … Continue reading

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Single-Family Housing Starts Fade In July

Sometimes, you need to look deeper than the headlines to get the news that matters. This basic truth’s latest example comes from the July Housing Starts data, as published by the U.S. Census Bureau. According to the newspapers, Housing Starts … Continue reading

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