RECENT BLOG POSTS
On a seasonally-adjusted basis, the Pending Home Sales Index rose 2 percent last month, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. A “pending home sale” is defined as a home under contract to sell, but not yet closed. February’s Pending Home Sales Index rebound breaks a 2-month losing s...
03/29/2011
Mortgage markets worsened last week as nuclear meltdown concerns eased across Japan, and the war within Libya moved closer to a potential finish. Wall Street voted with its dollars, and a return to risk-taking emerged. “Safe haven” buying softened last week and, as a result, conforming mortgage...
03/28/2011
It’s a great time for Scottsdale buyers and homeowners to look at the 15-year fixed rate mortgage. According to Freddie Mac’s weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the relative “discount” of a 15-year fixed rate loan as compared to a comparable 30-year product is the largest in recorded history...
03/25/2011
Sales of newly-built homes plunged 17 percent to an seasonally-adjusted, annualized 250,000 units in February, and the supply of new homes rose to 8.9 months in February — a 1.5 month jump from January. It’s the lowest New Home Sales reading in recorded history, according to the Census Bureau, a...
03/24/2011
Existing Home Sales fell 10 percent last month, according to a report from the National Association of REALTORS®. On an annual basis, 4.88 million homes were sold in February — the first time annualized home resales dropped below 5,000,000 since November 2010. An “existing home” is one that’s no...
03/22/2011
Mortgage markets improved again last week despite an inflation-acknowledging statement from the FOMC and stronger-than-expected jobless data. Usually, events like this would lead mortgage rates higher, but violence in the Middle East and worsening fear for public safety in Japan took center stag...
03/21/2011
Today, for the second straight meeting, the Federal Open Market Committee voted unanimously to leave the Fed Funds Rate unchanged within its target range of 0.000-0.250 percent. The vote was 10-0. In its press release, the FOMC noted that since its January 2011 meeting, the economic recovery “is ...
03/15/2011
Mortgage markets improved last week in a week of few economic releases. The one major data point — Retail Sales — showed stronger-than-expected, but markets reacted mildly. The report’s strength was whispered in advance of the actual release; its reading validated Wall Street’s growing faith in...
03/14/2011
Beginning April 1, 2011, Fannie Mae is increasing its loan-level pricing adjustments. Conforming mortgage applicants in Arizona should plan for higher loan costs in the months ahead. If you’ve never heard of loan-level pricing adjustments, you’re not alone; they’re an obscure mortgage pricing me...
03/10/2011
April 15 is the traditional due date for federal income taxes. It’s a deadline so ingrained in the American psyche that the April 15 calendar date is often called, simply, “Tax Day”. In 2011, however, federal taxes aren’t due April 15. They’re due April 18. It’s because of a combination of holid...
03/09/2011
