Today, Freddie Mac reported that the national averages for mortgage rates for the week ending April 18 fell for the third week in a row. Thirty-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 3.41%, with an average 0.7 point, down from 3.43% last week and 3.90% the same time last year. For 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, the average rate was […]
Mortgage News Daily recently reported that four members of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee have introduced legislation that would control how the increase in guarantee fees levied by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are used and when the stock in the two companies can be approved for sale. The Jumpstart GSE Reform […]
RealtyTrac recently reported that short sales outpaced foreclosure sales in 2012 by a 3-to-1 margin. While foreclosure sales accounted for 11% of all sales — a 13% drop from 2011 — short sales made up 32% of all sales last year, a 5% year-over-year gain. In the fourth quarter of 2012, foreclosures sold at a […]
A recent survey from YouWalkAway.com showed that 80% of homeowners in strategic default — that is, those who “walked away” from their mortgages when they started facing foreclosure — are looking to buy another house within the next 12 months. This may benefit the housing market early next year: Moody’s Analytics says that there will […]
There is a tug-of-war in Congress over a bill that would reduce up-front fees for homeowners with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans who wish to refinance and eliminate appraisal costs. While Democrats argue this will save homeowners thousands of dollars a year in mortgage payments, Republicans say the best way for the housing market […]
USA Today reported that the average rates of 30-year and 15-year fixed-rate mortgages remained unchanged for the second week in a row. Both rates stayed at near-record lows, which contributed to a surge in home sales. Today, Freddie Mac announced that the rate on 30-year loans averaged 3.53%, the lowest since it was at 3.31% […]
Freddie Mac announced today that homeowners who refinanced their mortgages during the fourth quarter of 2012 were able to reduce their interest rates by an average of 1.8 percentage points. That works out to a 33% reduction of their interest rates, which is the largest reduction ever recorded by Freddie Mac. As an example, a […]
Twenty U.S. metropolitan areas are now part of the expanding Improving Markets Index as of this month, according to the National Association of Home Builders and First American Title Insurance. The February IMI list now includes 259 metro areas and has all 50 states represented on the list, including the District of Columbia. The new […]
According to Bloomberg, government-sponsored agencies such as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae have been issuing $1.72 trillion worth of guaranteed securities within 2012, compared with $1.22 trillion that was dispensed last year. Due to 30-year mortgage rates decreasing to record lows, refinancing has brought total lending to nearly $1.8 trillion throughout the year, […]
The Wall Street Journal noted that the Federal Government may incorporate borrowers who use organizations other than Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac into the mortgage refinancing program by allowing precarious loans, backed by private investors, to be transferred to government-backed agencies. The program is said to also include “underwater borrowers,” whose homes are not worth […]