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Freddie Mac reports a drop in the 30-year fixed mortgage rate to 5.94 percent during the week ended Oct. 9, marking the first decrease in three weeks.
The 15-year fixed rate slipped to 5.63 percent from 5.78 percent the previous week.
Meanwhile, the five-year adjustable mortgage rate dropped a notch to 5.9 percent from 6 percent; and the one-year ARM dipped slightly to 5.15 percent.
Source: Miami Herald (10/10/08)
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DALLAS (Dallas Morning News) – High-end home sales have taken a hit
from the stumbling mortgage market, with million-dollar-plus home purchases
falling about 12 percent in the Dallas–Fort Worth area through August.
"The high-end market has been slow for the past year or more as the credit
markets have priced those mortgages higher than normal," said Dr. Jim Gaines,
research economist with the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University. "And
people who were stretching to buy the $1 million home instead of the $700,000
one they could really afford are now not able to make the stretch."
Purchases of homes between $800,000 and $1 million have taken an almost 25
percent downturn.
In the Park Cities, where homes average $1.2 million, the number of houses on
the market has grown 40 percent since August while sales have decreased about 16
percent. North Dallas listings are up while sales are down about 30 percent.
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NEW YORK (New York Times) – Countrywide Financial, in an effort to resolve lawsuits against it, has launched the largest program ever to help struggling homeowners in Texas and ten other states. The lender, recently acquired by Bank of America, will provide a total of $8.7 billion to borrowers, $8.4 billion of which will be through direct loan relief that will affect about 400,000 people. Countrywide will also waive $79 million in late fees and $56 million in prepayment penalties, and suspend foreclosures on delinquent borrowers with the riskiest loans. A foreclosure relief fund will be created with $150 million from Countrywide to help borrowers who are four or more months behind on their payments or whose homes have already been foreclosed on. The company will also provide $70 million to help troubled borrowers relocate to rental housing. Additionally, Countrywide will reduce principal balances in some cases and cut interest rates in others. To qualify, the borrower's first payment must have been due between Jan. 1, 2004, and Dec. 31, 2007. The loan balance must be at least 75 percent of the current value of the home, and the borrower must be able to afford the adjusted monthly payments.
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April 16th from 7:30 to 8:30 pm at Apex Sports Center, 1741 Commerce Drive, Mansfield Free Pizza and Refreshments provided by Apex Sports Center and Palio's Pizza RSVP required by phone to 817-313-4363 Katie Holmes, Greater Home Land Mortgage Also sponsored by LandAmerica Commonwealth Title, Carlos Woltmann, 817-723-4242
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TEXAS (Houston Chronicle, Associated Press) – Many Texas homeowners could soon be paying more for their insurance coverage thanks to rate increases that are either in the works or in effect with several major insurance companies. State Farm Insurance Co. and Farmers Insurance Cos. have both filed for rate increases with the Texas Department of Insurance, and Allstate has already raised its rates. State Farm, the largest insurer of homes and cars in Texas, has filed for an average 3.6 percent rate increase in Texas homeowners' insurance policies. Farmers, meanwhile, has filed for a statewide average increase of 2.5 percent, and homeowners in some parts of Harris County could face hikes as high as 25 percent. In addition, Fire Insurance, a subsidiary of Farmers Insurance Cos., has filed for a statewide average rate increase of 1.7 percent. Allstate has already implemented a flat 5.9 percent increase statewide and an additional average 2.1 percent bump for homeowners in some coastal counties.
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DALLAS (Dallas Morning News) – Thanks to a nationwide housing slump that is keeping homes on the market longer, many sellers are trimming prices this winter in hopes of landing a sale. According to a National Association of Realtors survey, almost 60 percent of recent U.S. homesellers said they had to cut their prices, and about a quarter said they had to lower their price two or more times. Some agents try to convince clients that starting with an inflated asking price does not work in today's market. "These sellers ultimately hurt themselves by overpricing their homes from the start," said local real estate agent Barry Hoffer. "Their homes do not compare favorably with the competition in that price range, and they ultimately have to reduce the asking price multiple times to get it sold." The North Texas Real Estate Information System says pre-owned houses here sell for an average of 96 percent of list price. However, that number does not include markdowns and price cuts that occur when sellers switch agents. It currently takes an average of 80 days to sell a house in North Texas, up 11 percent from a year ago. Condos take almost four months on average.
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WASHINGTON (federalreserve.gov, CNN) – The Federal Reserve Board’s Federal Open Market Committee cut its short-term interest rate by a half of a percentage point today to 4.75 percent. According to the committee, the tightening of credit conditions has the potential to intensify the housing correction and to restrain economic growth more generally. The committee said today's rate cut is intended to help forestall some of the adverse effects on the broader economy that might otherwise arise from the disruptions in financial markets and to promote moderate growth over time. The cut to the federal funds rate is the first since June 2003. In a related action, the Board of Governors also unanimously approved a 50-basis-point decrease in the discount rate to 5.25 percent. The discount rate is the rate banks pay to borrow directly from the Federal Reserve.
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MANSFIELD (Dallas Business Journal) – Harvest Family Entertainment has begun construction on Hawaiian Falls/Mansfield, a 14-acre water park at Heritage Parkway and SH 360. The $10 million water park, which includes 12 waterslides, a football field–sized wavepool and a "lazy river," is a joint venture between Hawaiian Falls, the Mansfield Park Facilities Development Corp. and the city. The city will own the park and Hawaiian Falls will operate it under a 40-year lease. The park will employ about 200 people. It is expected to attract about 150,000 guests per year and increase the local economy by about $5 million annually. Harvest Family Entertainment has codeveloped and managed 17 water and amusement parks in Arizona, California, Hawaii, Missouri, Mississippi and Texas. Hawaiian Falls/Mansfield is expected to open next Memorial Day.
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DALLAS (Dallas Morning News) – While U.S. existing-home prices fell 3.2 percent in second quarter 2007, the local market saw a 1.6 percent gain. According to Standard & Poor's quarterly housing index, which surveys 20 cities, Dallas was one of only five markets in the country with price gains. Housing analysts say North Texas avoided the overheated home prices that became common in other parts of the country. The median home price in June nationally was $230,100. In the Dallas–Fort Worth area, it was $150,000. Still, North Texas has one of the highest home foreclosure rates in the country, and analysts say it is vulnerable to the home-lending fallout. "The big risk is if we have any kind of economic slowdown or recession, if we start having job losses on top of the mortgage problems," said Dr. James Gaines of the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University.
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WASHINGTON (Associated Press) – Earlier today, Aug 31st, President Bush outlined initiatives designed to help homeowners with risky mortgages keep their houses. A key element of President Bush's plan would allow homeowners, who have good credit histories but cannot afford their mortgage payments, to refinance into mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration. He rejected any direct government aid to homeowners losing their houses to foreclosures, saying he supported only federal government help that would encourage refinancing and educate prospective homebuyers about risky mortgage terms.
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Eight North Texas cities made Forbes magazine's list of "America's Fastest Growing Suburbs." Frisco and Wylie were among the top 10 fastest growing suburbs in America, according to the list. They were ranked No. 7 and No. 8 respectively. Texas had the largest number of cities on the list with 20. Other Dallas-Fort Worth cities making the list were McKinney (13); Rockwall (21); Allen (33); The Colony (47); Saginaw (50) and Mansfield (54). The list was compiled using U.S. Census growth data from 2000 to 2006, with help from Demographia, a research firm based in St. Louis. Because a city's metropolitan statistical area is affected by the counties it encompasses, Demographia excluded those outlying towns that were in suburban counties but didn't have significant economic and social ties to the big city
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FREE ADMISSION 9am - 6pm Katherine Rose Memorial Park 303 N. Walnut Creek Drive in Mansfield Activities: Bounce Houses, Local Talent On Community Stage, Battle of the Bands Hometown Idol, 5k Run, Vendors, Mansfield Farmers Market Food Vendors, Petting Zoo, Horse Rides and More !
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WASHINGTON (National Association of Realtors) – Sales of existing homes fell last month. Prices rose modestly as inventories eased, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Total existing-home sales — including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops — declined 3.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.8 million units, 11.4 percent below the 6.5 million unit pace same time last year. “Although we’ve seen seasonal month-to-month price increases over the past four months, this is the first time in 11 months that the median home price is higher than the year-ago price,” said NAR Senior Economist Lawrence Yun. Last month’s national median existing-home price for all housing types was $230,100, up 0.3 percent from last year. Total housing inventory fell 4.2 percent to 4.2 million existing homes available for sale, representing an almost nine-month supply at the current sales pace, the same as in May. Regionally, existing-home sales in the South eased by 1.7 percent to an annual sales rate of 2.3 million, 11.4 percent below a year ago. The median price in the South was $190,800, up 0.7 percent from June 2006.
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As of this writing, 104 Texas school districts have scheduled bond elections for May 12 to take advantage of what some school superintendents and school-board members have described as "free money." Many property owners have been told they can pass their local bonds and still not pay any more tax than in the past. Although absolute numbers may bear that out, such a statement is at best disingenuous. What happened to the tax cuts?
If passed, these bonds would significantly erode the property-tax reductions passed by the Texas Legislature. The remaining 33-cent reductions are on the verge of buying down school maintenance and operations taxes to $1 per $100 of valuation, providing much-needed relief to Texas property owners. Certainly, the Texas Association of REALTORS® does not oppose school-bond initiatives. It’s possible that your local schools have proposals for much-needed, long-overdue capital improvements. However, there is no such thing as free money, and property owners need to recognize that passing these bonds will increase their property taxes. Without that knowledge, voters who approve bond packages may look at future tax bills and complain that legislators promised a tax cut they never delivered. How you can help
Get involved in the election and help other voters in your community understand that a bond election is a property-tax increase. The best outcome for everyone is If you and your neighbors make an informed decision at the polls based on the needs of your local schools. |
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