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Existing Home Sales Gain 1.4 Percent In October
Existing-home sales, which include previously owned single-family houses, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops, increased 1.4 percent in October, according to the National Association of Realtors. The gains put sales 13.5 percent above last year's levels. Lawrence Yun,...
Delinquency Rate Falls To Lowest Level Since 2008
The seasonally adjusted delinquency rate, which includes all loans that are at least one payment past due, fell to 7.99 percent in the third quarter, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's National Delinquency Survey. The drop brought the delinquency rate to...
Building Permits Rebound, Up 10.9 Percent In October
Despite a turn downward in September, permits to build privately-owned housing units rose 10.9 percent in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 653,000, 17.7 percent above last year's estimate. Permits to build single-family homes gained 5.1 percent...
Builder Confidence Climbs For Second Straight Month
The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index measures builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes. In November, the index rose three points to 20, the second consecutive month of gains. David Crowe, NAHB's chief...
Mortgage Rates Rise To 4.23 Percent
According to The Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Applications Survey, the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 4.23 percent last week from 4.22 percent the week before. The 30-year rate on jumbo loans fell to 4.56 percent....
Consumer Sentiment At Five Month High
Often cited as one of the primary factors behind the slow pace of the housing market's recovery, consumer sentiment hit a five-month high in November after rising for the third month in a row. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index rose to...
Improvement Forecast For Housing Market in 2012
According to Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors, the best affordability conditions since 1970 combined with a significant level of pent-up demand will lead to an improvement in home sales and the overall housing market in 2012. Yun...
Foreclosures Down More Than 30 Percent From October 2010
RealtyTrac's U.S. Foreclosure Market Report for October shows foreclosure filings, including default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions, were reported on 230,678 properties during the month, down 31 percent from last year. But despite year-over-year...
Median Monthly Mortgage Payment Most Affordable Since 1971
Housing affordability has increased dramatically over the past five years, due to price declines following the housing bubble's collapse and mortgage rates near record lows. According to an analysis from David Stiff, chief economist at Fiserv, the monthly mortgage...
Mortgage Demand Surges As Rates Fall To 4.22 Percent
According to The Mortgage Bankers Associations Weekly Applications Survey, the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances fell from 4.31 percent to 4.22 percent last week. The drop brought rates to their second lowest...