ARCHIVED BLOG POSTS
2013
The most recent S&P/Case-Shiller Index Report showed all three composites posting double-digit increases over the last four quarters. The national composite, which is the broadest based index, showed an increase of 10.2% annually. The 20-City composite posted even stronger annual growth at 10.9%....
05/30/2013
Minutes of the April/May Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) recently released may have a significant impact on mortgage rates going forward. One significant development from the meeting suggests that the present quantitative easing (QE) program may be modified in the near future. The current QE...
05/23/2013
Last week was jam-packed with economic news; here are some highlights with emphasis on housing and mortgage related news: Monday: Retail sales for April increased to -0.1 percent from the March reading of -0.5 percent and also surpassed Wall Street's downward forecast of -0.6 percent. Retail sale...
05/20/2013
Home builders are gaining confidence in current and future market conditions for new homes, but continue to see below-average foot traffic in new homes. The reading for May's National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) /Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) increased by three points to a readin...
05/16/2013
When deciding to sell a piece of St Paul real estate, there are certain things you must disclose about the property to the buyer before the sale can go through. Disclosure laws are put in place to protect the buyer from unknowingly purchasing defective property. Not disclosing certain informatio...
05/14/2013
Mortgage rates rose last week with average rates a 30-year fixed rate mortgage rising from last week's 3.35 percent to 3.42 percent with buyers paying all closing costs and 0.7 percent in discount points. Average rates for a 15-year fixed rate mortgage rose from 2.56 percent to 2.61 percent with ...
05/13/2013
RealtyTrac recently reported that national foreclosure filings are down while foreclosure filings are seeing marked increases in some states. There are two systems for foreclosing residential real estate in the United States; judicial and non-judicial foreclosure. The states individually decide w...
05/09/2013
Mortgage rates fell last week and approached or reached record low levels. According to Freddie Mac, the average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage (FRM) fell from 3.40 percent to 3.35 percent. Average rates for a 15-year FRM moved from 2.61percent to 2.56 percent. Average rates for a 5/1 adj...
05/06/2013
Wednesday's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) statement indicates the Federal Reserve's commitment to keeping long term interest rates and inflation under control. The Fed will continue monitoring inflation, but does not expect inflation to rise more than 0.50 percent above its target rate of ...
05/02/2013
Housing markets continue to improve according to the S&P Case Shiller Home Price Indices released April 30 for February's data. The Indices consist of a 10-City Composite Index and a 20-City Composite Index with housing markets for each city reported based on a three-month rolling average of home...
05/01/2013
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