freddie mac: 4 Reasons It Will Be Easier to Buy a Home in 2015
- 01/11/15 09:11 PM
Housing economists and would-be homebuyers are finding reasons for optimism as 2015 nears. To be fair, the bar's set pretty low after a tough year for housing. However, there are some genuinely encouraging signs that next year will be better for prospective buyers. Economic recovery and an improving job market will go a long way to boosting affordability for buyers in many markets. Here's a look at four reasons why the upcoming year might be a difference-maker for would-be homebuyers. 1. Looser Mortgage Credit After years of hyper-cautious lending, more mortgage lenders are starting to relax credit and underwriting requirements, which … (0 comments)
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freddie mac: Fannie, Freddie unveil 3 percent down-payment programs
- 12/08/14 08:54 PM
Lower down payment rules announced. Will banks offer them?
A deal for first-time homebuyers. But will they take advantage of 3 percent down?
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac on Monday spelled out the terms under which they will accept mortgages with down payments of as low as 3 percent from first-time buyers, but it may take time to see how many lenders will sign on to the initiative.
The change in policy, broadly announced in October, is designed to entice millennials as well as low- and moderate-income consumers, to take the plunge and become homeowners, a move many aren't taking, … (1 comments)
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freddie mac: How Fannie Mae Could Boost Your Home's Value in 2015
- 12/07/14 09:45 PM
It has been difficult to get a mortgage since the financial crisis, so this could easily give the real estate market a kick-start going into 2015.
Why is it so difficult to get a mortgage?
Of course, if you have great credit, low debt, a rock-solid employment history, and the ability to pay 20% down, then it isn't terribly difficult to get a mortgage. However, it can be difficult for anyone outside of the top tier, unless they want to pay up for a super-expensive FHA loan.
According to the latest Ellie Mae Origination Insight Report, the average credit score … (0 comments)
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freddie mac: Breaking/Good News for Housing Industry
- 10/22/14 06:08 AM
Two monumental decisions in U.S. housing regulations this week are major victories for homebuyers – and the housing industry at large.
For starters, the final qualified residential mortgage, or QRM, rule eliminates the highly controversial requirement of a specific down payment amount, bringing the rule in line with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s qualified mortgage, or QM, rule. The latter was created to protect borrowers from predatory lending practices.
Another victory for housing: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are releasing new guidelines that will allow borrowers with lackluster credit profiles to obtain loans with a down payment as low as 3 percent by considering “compensating factors.” Federal … (1 comments)
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freddie mac: Good News From September
- 10/21/14 10:00 PM
US existing-home sales rebounded in September from a dip in August to their highest pace of the year, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday.
Though September sales were at the peak rate yet of 2014, compared with a year ago they were down 1.7 percent.Sales of used single-family homes increased 2.4 percent to an annual rate of 5.17 million units in September, up from 5.05 million the prior month, the NAR said.
"Low interest rates and price gains holding steady led to September's healthy increase, even with investor activity remaining on par with last month's marked decline,” said Lawrence … (0 comments)
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freddie mac: Recovering Housing Market to Spur Economic Recovery in New Year
- 11/24/13 08:12 PM
Next year will likely be the first year since 2000 that home purchases outpace refinances, according to Freddie Mac’s expectations. Furthermore, the rallying housing market should set the broader economy on a brighter path, according to Freddie Mac’s U.S. Economic and Housing Market Outlook for November.
“Led by a resurgent housing sector, 2014 should shape up to be better than 2013,” Freddie Mac stated in its outlook.
Housing starts, which have been slow, should rise to a pace of about 1.15 million in 2014, according to Freddie Mac.
This is more in line with the historical average of 1.1 million per year reported by … (0 comments)
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freddie mac: Average U.S. 30-year mortgage rate down to 4.32 percent
- 09/28/13 10:33 PM
Average U.S. rates on fixed mortgages fell this week to their lowest point in two months. The decline follows the Federal Reserve’s decision last week to hold off slowing its monthly bond purchases.
Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average rate on the 30-year loan dropped to 4.32 percent from 4.50 percent last week. The average on the 15-year fixed loan declined to 3.37 percent from 3.54 percent.
Both are the lowest averages since July 25.
Mortgage rates are nearly a full percentage point higher than in May, when the Fed first signaled it might slow its $85-billion-a-month in bond buys. … (2 comments)
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freddie mac: Buyers Should Forget About Mortgage Rates, Focus on Rising Prices
- 03/16/13 11:11 PM
Yesterday, Freddie Mac reported that the average interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) rose again to 3.63%. That’s an increase of +0.11% over last week and +0.29% since the start of this year.
So far, the predictions of Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac’s chief economist, appear to be coming true. He previously predicted a gradual but steady rise in mortgage rates during 2013, perhaps reaching or exceeding 3.75% by year’s end.
Real estate agents and mortgage companies use these trends to motivate home buyers. They point to rising mortgage rates and say that now is the time to buy a … (1 comments)
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freddie mac: ASF Outlines Fannie, Freddie Mortgage Securities Merger
- 03/08/13 08:45 PM
The American Securitization Forum has detailed possible ways regulators could merge mortgage-backed securities offered by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in order to close the pricing gap between the two.
The market discounts Freddie securities on the belief these bonds prepay faster because of differences in underwriting and other guidelines. The government-sponsored enterprises always held smaller market share compared to its twin Fannie, but the spread between the two widened sharply since the fall of 2011.
Freddie Mac 4.5 bonds traded 48 cents cheaper than comparable Fannie securities as of June 12, meaning an originator delivering to Freddie loses $4.8 … (1 comments)
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freddie mac: Mortgages Likely to Change Hands
- 02/11/12 02:21 AM
“Who owns my mortgage?”
It’s a frequently asked question, and the reason is always the same: A change is needed. Someone is trying to refinance the mortgage, or is trying to save a house from foreclosure, among possible scenarios.
Finding the answer to this question has become extremely important to many homeowners, but especially those in financial trouble. The many programs designed to stem the record tide of foreclosures have different requirements, depending on where your mortgage ended up after you signed that huge stack of papers at settlement.
For example, if your mortgage is guaranteed … (0 comments)
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freddie mac: Mortgage Rates Reach Record Lows as Stock Market Losses Mount
- 08/11/11 12:29 AM
Mortgage rates continued to move lower as investor concerns over the health of the U.S. economy increased, reports mortgage rate research website, ForTheBestRate.com. Interest rates advertised on the site have dropped to near their lowest point of 2011 for most products, with the 15 year fixed reaching historical record lows. On August 4, 15 year mortgage rates as low as 3.250% were posted (APR: 3.387%, Lender: Gateway Bank Mortgage).
Mortgage pricing has edged lower while US and global stock markets are seeing losses, including a drop in the Dow of more than 500 points on Thursday, August 4, the largest single … (1 comments)
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freddie mac: Home loan market future prediction
- 05/03/11 12:10 AM
Uncle Sam is backing away from a big part of the home-loan business in a slow retreat that will ultimately make mortgages more expensive. The trade-off is that taxpayers won’t bear the cost — or not as much of it — if the housing market implodes again. It will take years to wind down Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the infamous failed mortgage giants now in conservatorship. But we’re already getting a taste of what life will be like without them.
For decades, Fannie and Freddie formed a vast, secondary market for mortgage loans by standardizing terms, then packaging loans into … (1 comments)
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freddie mac: Growing Number of Homeowners Becoming Landlords
- 09/25/10 01:03 AM
A growing number of homeowners are finding out what it means to be a landlord after failing to sell their homes in today’s economy. With home prices down nationwide, many don’t want to take a huge loss when they decide to move. They want to wait to see whether they can rebuild their equity—so they rent.
“People just really don’t want to be landlords, and they really have no choice,” said Dennis Dickstein, a Realtor at Real Estate One in Farmington Hills, Mich., who estimates that 20% of his deals are leases.
Mark and Rhonda LaVelle decided to buy a bigger home … (2 comments)
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freddie mac: Fannie, Freddie in the Home-Selling Business
- 09/21/10 03:16 AM
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac repossessed more than 191,000 homes during the first six months of 2010, twice as many as a year earlier. The mortgage financiers must act carefully to avoid flooding the market with foreclosures, which tend to depress neighborhood home prices in the process. As an alternative, Fannie Mae has launched a pilot "lease-and-hold" program in which foreclosures are rented rather than sold; the move could pose challenges, however, as the firm takes on the new role of property manager. Source: The Wall Street Journal, Nick Timiraos (09/17/10)
… (0 comments)
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freddie mac: Looking Toward the Future – What’s Next for Housing Finance, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac?
- 09/03/10 10:00 AM
With the overhaul of financial regulation in the bag, the Obama administration will focus next on housing finance with an eye to deciding the fate of mortgage finance titans Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The administration said in a statement that it would hold a Conference on the Future of Housing Finance at the Treasury Department on Aug. 17. It will seek input for legislation to reform the rules governing mortgage finance and the markets for bonds backed by U.S. mortgages.
The Bush administration placed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in government conservatorship in September 2008. Uncertainty about what to do … (0 comments)
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Housing economists and would-be homebuyers are finding reasons for optimism as 2015 nears. To be fair, the bar's set pretty low after a tough year for housing. However, there are some genuinely encouraging signs that next year will be better for prospective buyers. Economic recovery and an improving job market will go a long way to boosting affordability for buyers in many markets. Here's a look at four reasons why the upcoming year might be a difference-maker for would-be homebuyers. 1. Looser Mortgage Credit After years of hyper-cautious lending, more mortgage lenders are starting to relax credit and underwriting requirements, which … (0 comments)
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