Housing Market Outlook for 2013

After a rough few years, the housing market and the economy are finally on an upward trend! Housing starts, prices and confidence are showing better figures everyday. Of course there are always ups and downs, and while some investors are still being cautious about jumping into the market, 2013 is promising to bring a more competitive market for homebuyers.  With the housing inventory as low as it is, experts wouldn't be surprised if bidding wars break out among investors and homebuyers. It is expected that homes will sell fast in 2013 as long as they are priced right. It is a homesellers market! When the market was experiencing buying dry spells during the recession, the Federal Reserve dropped interest rates to record-lows in order to lure buyers. Now that things are steadily improving,...

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Aid for California's Foreclosed Homeowners

If you are one of the many Californians who were affected by the state's foreclosure crisis, help may be on the way! California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris has awarded $9.4 million to 21 different organizations that will assist homeowners through California's National Mortgage Settlement Grant Program. These grants will benefit the neediest homeowners by providing better access to free legal assistance and representation. Homeowners will also have access to foreclosure intervention aid, education and financial literacy clinics, employment support and more. “The foreclosure crisis has inflicted wide-ranging and deep harm to California homeowners and communities,” said Attorney General Harris. “These grants will give homeowners and families the financial and legal tools they need to...

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Mortgage Rates Drop in April

According to Freddie Mac's most recent Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the average fixed mortgage rate has moved lower for the 3rd consecutive week. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.41 percent with an average 0.7 point, which is down from 3.90 percent this time last year. As the housing market continued to recover, many people are taking advantage of these low rates by refinancing their current mortgages. Some people opt to refinance their long-term mortgage to a shorter-term mortgage. The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged at 2.64 percent with an average 0.7 point, down from 3.13 percent last year. The Survey also reported that consumer spending was weaker during the week ending April 18th. Some economists believe that this weakness in retail sales lead to the mortgage rates...

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Rising Costs Put Pressure on Builders

So far, the month of April has brought about increasing costs for building materials. Home builders have already been facing a shortage of developed lots and skilled laborers, which  has caused builders' confidence to register lower that usual in the market for newly built, single-family homes. The Housing Market Index has suffered a two-point drop to 42. This index measures the perceptions of builders regarding home sales and sales expectations for the next six months. They rate it as either "good," "fair," or "poor." Builders also rate the traffic of potential buyers as "high to very high," "average," or "low to very low." As long as the tallied scores for each of these categories are calculated anywhere above 50, more builders view conditions as good than poor. "Many builders are...

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HARP Benefits Underwater Borrowers

Since HARP began in April 2009, more than 2.2 million homeowners have refinanced. In January 2013, there were roughly 97,600 HARP refinances, which shows that HARP continues to be a benefit to underwater borrowers. 25% of the loans refinanced through HARP had a loan-to-value ratio greater than 125%. Also, 18% of HARP refinances for underwater borrowers were for shorter-term mortgages such as 15 or 20 years, which would help build equity faster than a traditional 30-year mortgage. This information comes from the FHFA's January 2013 Refinance Report which suggests a high refinance volume with nearly 470,000 refinances completed in January, including the HARP ones...

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Payout to 4.2 Million Borrowers Beginning April 12th

There was an agreement between the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC),  the Federal Reserve Board, and 13 mortgage servicers that will make payments to 4.2 million borrowers starting April 12th. This agreement will provide $3.6 billion in cash payments to homeowners that have found themselves in any stage of foreclosure in 2009 or 2010. Those defaulted loans must have been serviced by by one of the following companies or their subsidiaries  Aurora, Bank of America, Citibank, Goldman Sachs, HSBC, JPMorgan Chase, MetLife Bank, Morgan Stanley, PNC, Sovereign, SunTrust, U.S. Bank, and Wells Fargo. The checks will be sent in several waves starting with 1.4 million checks being sent out on April 12th, and ending sometime in mid-July 2013.  The payments are expected...

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California Homeowner Bill of Rights

Homeowners in California have been dancing on the edge of foreclosure, but now help is in sight. Attorney General Kamala D. Harris has recently announced a $1 million California Homeowner Bill of Rights (HBOR) grant to be implemented into The National Housing Law Project. This bill is a set of laws that will extend key mortgage and foreclosure protections to California homeowners and borrowers. “Californians were hit hard by the mortgage crisis and many people are still struggling to stay in their homes,” Attorney General Harris said. “The California Homeowner Bill of Rights gives borrowers more opportunities to stay in their homes, and this grant will help make sure the law is applied across the state and that everyone gets the protection they are entitled to.” The laws took effect at the...

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