Bob's Coto Blog

Mortgage markets improved last week on stronger-than-expected economic data and safe haven buying. The holiday-shortened trading week amplified what should have been modest gains into large ones. Conforming mortgage rates dropped by about a quarter-percent last week, dropping them near their best...

For today's home buyers and homeowners that can manage the higher monthly payments, 15-year fixed rate mortgage rates look attractive as compared to comparable 30-year products. The 15-year/30-year interest rate spread is near its 5-year high. Despite lower rates, however, homeowners opting for ...

Hello again – I hope your Thanksgiving Day ( And Black Friday.) went beautifully! In our local housing market, the number of available houses is now the lowest in at least a few years.  In Coto de Caza, for example, it went from a previous low of 131 houses, back in mid January, to hovering aroun...

It's official -- home prices are no longer in free fall.  According to the Federal Housing Finance Agency, the Home Price Index posted its first quarterly increase since 2007 last quarter. The news was reported Tuesday. The Home Price Index is an interesting metric.  It's huge in its scope, accou...

Home affordability improved this week after the Federal Reserve released its November 3-4, 2009 meeting minutes. The FOMC Minutes is a companion to the Federal Reserve's post-meeting press release. It's released 3 weeks after the Fed adjourns and details the internal debates that shape our nation...

Another month, another piece of evidence that the housing market is in recovery. Existing Home Sales surged in October as the nation's homebuyers took advantage of low mortgage rates, low list prices, and, for some, a generous tax credit. Home resales are 23 percent higher versus a year ago and ...

Mortgage markets worsened last week on a mixed bag of economic data.  Inflation data came in soft, but so did the start of the holiday shopping season. For the first time in a month, mortgage rates worsened last week, adding roughly 0.125 percent on conforming fixed-rate products, and a little bi...

A "Housing Start" is a home on which construction has started and, for the 4th straight month, national single-family housing starts held steady last month.  When the demand for homes grows faster than the number of homes for sale, prices increase.  As recent home sales data confirms, buyers cur...

Here is the latest Orange County, California, Housing Report from my friend Steven Thomas, the President of Altera Real Estate. Monday, November 16, 2009 Have you ever pedaled up a steep hill on your bicycle as a kid only to wonder if you were going to ever make it? That's the same feeling that s...

A conforming mortgage is one that, quite literally, conforms to the mortgage guidelines set forth by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Each year, the government sets the maximum allowable loan size for a conforming mortgage, based on "typical" housing costs nationwide.  Loans in excess of this amount a...