Ishakis Finance Report Mortgage Broker Brooklyn
Loan Officer Yael Ishakis’s take on mortgage and finance news.
More than 60 percent of U.S. homes are “over-assessed”, says an industry trade group. It causes homeowners to pay more in property taxes than they otherwise should have to. You might be one of them. Have you considered fighting it?
Volcanic eruptions and like natural disasters remind us: mortgage rates change for all sorts of reasons. Some we can predict, most we cannot. There’s literally thousands of influences on the U.S. mortgage market. If you’ve been shopping for a home or floating a mortgage rate, luck’s been on your side.
A Housing Start is a new home on which construction has started and, over the last 6 months, home builders are averaging one half-million starts per month. This marks the highest 6-month average since 2008 and a reading one-fifth percent better from 12 months ago. Revisions to prior data have all been higher, too.
Mortgage markets improved last week for the second week in a row. And, also for the second week in a row, rates were down on “safe haven” buying — just not for the same safe haven reasons as before.
Each week, government-led Freddie Mac publishes a weekly mortgage rate survey based on data from 125 banks across the country. According to this week’s results, the relative rate of a 5-year ARM is extremely low versus its 30-year fixed-rate cousin.
California, Florida, Arizona and Georgia accounted for more than half of all bank repossessions in March 2010. It’s a disproportionate distribution of foreclosures. Together, the 4 states represent just 23 percent of the overall U.S. population.
If you’re under contract for a home and plan to close in May, consider a closing date other than Friday May 28, 2010.
Not all home improvements are created equal. Especially if you’re looking for “resale value” back from your work. An article from the Wall Street Journal lays it out cleanly. Function beats flash these days so be wary of where you spend.
If you’re floating or shopping a loan right now, be wary of market volatility. Rates have been jumpy since April 1 and mortgage rates are changing quickly. This week, locking in before Wednesday may be your safest, near-term rate locking strategy.
If your pre-qualification and/or pre-approval letter is more than 8 weeks old, it would be prudent to have your lender “re-pre-approve” you. Mortgage guidelines have been in flux and your original lender letter may now be invalid.