New Home Mortgage : New York, New Orleans, Arizona, Florida & Texas

Number of new mortgages up less than 1% last week, survey says. Mortgage application volume rose less than 1% during the week ended Aug. 22, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s weekly application survey.

The trade group’s application index rose to 421.6 during the week, from 419.3 a week earlier, which had been the lowest index level in nearly eight years. Refinance volume rose 0.3%, while purchase volume increased 0.6% during the week. Refinance volume accounted for 35.2% of all applications.
Read the rest of this entry »

In this buyer’s market, many are taking advantage of sellers’ desperation, demanding major home repairs, warranties on appliances, and even tax rebates.
A rock-bottom price just isn’t enough for buyers these days - it’s a starting point. If the furnace is out of date, they’ll demand a new one. Cracked driveways have to be repaved, and dirty carpeting torn out and replaced. All at the seller’s expense.

Type	Overnight avgs

Read the rest of this entry »

The takeover of Fannie and Freddie may make mortgage borrowing cheaper - but it won’t make getting a loan any easier. Mortgage rates have plummeted, but that hasn’t made getting a home loan any easier for most borrowers.

In the wake of the government’s takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac last weekend, the 30-year fixed rate has dropped from 6.26% last Friday to 5.79%. But only buyers with a credit score of 740 of above - and a 20% down payment - can qualify for such a low rate. During the boom, borrowers only needed scores of 640 to land the lowest rates available. Even a 580 score would get them very close to the best rate. Read the rest of this entry »

Bailout of Fannie and Freddie might lower mortgage rates but it’s unlikely to lead to a quick turnaround for the troubled housing market.

The federal government’s takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may save the battered real estate market from a complete meltdown. But financial experts say the bailout won’t lead to a housing recovery just yet. Instead, some on Wall Street said the housing sector is in as tough shape today as it was before Sunday’s rescue by the Treasury Department. Read the rest of this entry »

Inflation fears pushed U.S. 30-year mortgage rates up after being unchanged for three weeks according to Freddie Mac. 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.03 percent this week after three straight weeks at 5.88 percent. Rates on 30-year mortgages were last above 6 percent the week of March 16 when they averaged 6.13 percent. One-year adjustable rate mortgages, or ARMs, climbed to an average of 5.29 percent from 5.10 percent. The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 5.62% this week, up from last week’s 5.40% average. The mortgage averaged 5.87% a year ago. And one-year Treasury-indexed ARMs averaged 5.29% this week, up from last week’s 5.10% average. The ARM averaged 5.43% a year ago. A separate survey released Wednesday by the Mortgage Bankers Association showed that the volume of mortgage applications filed last week fell 14.2% compared with the week before. Lenders charged an average of 0.3 percent in fees and points on 30- and 15-year mortgages, down from 0.4 percent and 0.5 percent last week, respectively.