30-Year Fixed Mortgage Rates Hold Steady
30-Year Fixed Mortgage Rates Hold Steady Mortgage rates for 30-year fixed mortgages remained unchanged this week, with the current rate borrowers were quoted on Zillow Mortgages at 4.05 percent, up from 4.03 percent at this same time last week. The 30-year fixed mortgage rate hovered between 4.02 and 4.08 percent for the majority of the week, dropping below 4 percent on Friday before rising to the current rate this morning. “Last week rates dipped slightly after bank instability in Portugal triggered concerns about the broader European economy,” said Erin Lantz, vice president of mortgages at Zillow. “This week we expect rate activity to remain somewhat subdued amid ongoing international uncertainty.” Additionally, the 15-year fixed mortgage rate this morning was 3.03 percent and for 5/1 ARMs, the rate was 2.79 percent……………Read the full story. Twitter...
Read More5 Tips for Millennial Home Buyers
5 Tips for Millennial Home Buyers In previous generations, many people bought ‘starter’ homes while in their 20s or 30s. The world moved at a much slower pace then. People tended to stay put in the cities where they grew up. They wanted ‘roots’ and the status that homeownership afforded. But times have definitely changed. In the next generation of real estate, we’re a much more mobile society. Millennials, Generations X and Y don’t necessarily want to be tied down by roots. They want the freedom to travel, or to take that new job, whether it’s in Chicago, Los Angeles, or Dubai. Homeownership doesn’t have the same status to them that it had to earlier generations. And, they’ve heard the horror stories of home ownership from those who bought during the market high only to see their home values plummet during the recession. But there are still many who want to be homeowners. And, the approach is different now, then it may have been a generation ago. If you’re in your 20s or 30s today and considering buying a home vs. renting, here are some things to consider……..Read the full story. Twitter...
Read MoreOwners who borrowed on equity face jolt
Owners who borrowed on equity face jolt During the housing bubble, people didn’t just live in their homes — they used them as their personal ATMs. Exploding real estate values gave millions of Americans the motivation to borrow against their home. They would take out home equity lines of credit, or HELOCs, meaning they could get cash for their equity. Between 2004 and 2007, more than 325,000 San Diegans took out home equity lines of credit, totaling around $40 billion, real estate tracker DataQuick reports. Borrowers make interest-only payments on the loan for 10 years. After that, the line of credit converts to a mortgage and must be paid back — typically at a higher interest rate. Had home values kept rising, paying back the loans might have been easy, through a refinance or another line of credit. Today, however, many who bought during the housing bubble are just glad their homes have regained their original value, which plummeted during the Great Recession. Their equity disappeared, but the lines of credit remained. Now the bills from that first wave of HELOCs, taken out in 2004, are coming due. Homeowners must start paying on both interest and principal on the outstanding balance, and often at higher interest rates of 5 or 6 percent………. Read the full story. Twitter...
Read MoreVacation home market heats up
Vacation home market heats up More Americans felt rich enough to invest in vacation homes last year as the economy continued its recovery! Annual sales jumped nearly 30% to 717,000 homes, according to the National Association of Realtors. Vacation home sales represented 13% of the total market, their highest share since 2006. The median price rose to $168,700, up 12.5% from a year earlier. The sales were spurred by a strong stock market, according to Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors. The S&P 500 piled up a whopping 30% return in 2013, its best performance in 16 years. That provided investors with the funds and the confidence to purchase recreational property. Read the full story. Twitter...
Read MoreHousing’s a poor investment. Buy anyway
Housing’s a poor investment. Buy anyway I was raised to believe that renting amounted to throwing my money away. Buying a home, on the other hand, was an investment — and a safe one. That was before the biggest housing-market bubble in U.S. history began to collapse, tossing trillions of dollars in wealth out the window. Nine years later, values in San Diego County still haven’t fully recovered, particularly if you take inflation into account. In fact, prices have to climb an additional 50 percent before they regain the peak reached in November 2005. This means a whole lot of people have lost equity. However, values are up 29 percent from a bottom reached two years ago. So the market is coming back, just like it did over three lesser downturns since 1980. This suggests buyer confidence is returning. In all likelihood, most people have great reasons that have nothing to do with money, from bigger kitchens to freedom from cranky landlords. Read the full story. Twitter...
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