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Weekly Drop in Rates Saves Buyers $100 per Month

By Kerry Smith In real-world terms, this week’s mortgage rate drop (from 7.0% to 6.61%) saves typical buyers $1,200 per year – or gives them $12K more in purchasing power. SEATTLE – This week’s largest drop in mortgage rates in four decades (from 7.0% to 6.61%) coupled with the slowest annual home-price growth since the start of the pandemic is providing some relief for would-be homebuyers’ budgets. According to a report from Redfin, last week’s better-than-expected inflation report led to the biggest single-day mortgage-rate drop on record and the largest weekly drop since 1981. As a result mortgage-purchase applications shot
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Survey: Builders Pessimistic about Multifamily

By Kerry Smith NAHB’s 3Q survey of builder attitudes about multifamily development’s short-term future found strong demand amid challenges that could halt some projects. WASHINGTON – The prospects for continued high levels of multifamily development declined significantly in the third quarter, as did the prospects for continued high occupancy rates, according to results from the Multifamily Market Survey (MMS) released by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). The MMS produces two separate indices. The Multifamily Production Index (MPI) decreased 10 points to 32 compared to the previous quarter, while the Multifamily Occupancy Index (MOI) fell 15 points to 45.
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Long-Term Mortgage Rates Tumble to 6.61%

By Matt Ott Last week, a 30-year, fixed-rate loan averaged 7.08%; this week it dropped almost half a percentage point to 6.61% as signs suggest inflation may have peaked. WASHINGTON (AP) – The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate tumbled by nearly a half-point this week, but will likely remain a significant barrier for potential homebuyers as Federal Reserve officials have all but promised more rate hikes in the coming months. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the average on the key 30-year rate fell to 6.61% from 7.08% last week. A year ago the average rate was 3.1%. The
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Fed Official Open to Smaller Interest Rate Hikes

By Christopher Rugaber While the Fed isn’t done hiking interest rates, there’s a growing chance that future escalations will be lower than the 3/4-point increase posted after recent meetings. WASHINGTON (AP) – Christopher Waller, a key Federal Reserve official, added his voice Wednesday to a rising number of Fed officials who have suggested that the central bank will likely slow the pace of its interest rate hikes beginning in December. Waller, a member of the Fed’s Board of Governors, said he was open to raising the Fed’s key rate by a half-point next month in light of evidence that inflation
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Oct. Single-Family Starts Continue to Contract

By Kerry Smith Housing starts decreased 4.2% in Oct., with a larger dip in single-family home starts (down 6.1%) offset by a smaller dip in multifamily starts (down 1.2%). WASHINGTON – Elevated mortgage rates, high construction costs for concrete and other building materials, and weakening buyer demand in the face of rising mortgage rates continued to drag down single-family housing production. In October, overall housing starts decreased 4.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.43 million units, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. The 1.43 million represents the number of
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RE Market: 10 Headwinds You’ll Face Next Year

By Melissa Dittmann Tracey Calling 2023 an “extraordinary era of unpredictability,” the Counselors of Real Estate identified 10 top concerns, some of which weighed heavily in 2022. ORLANDO, Fla. – Both the residential and commercial real estate markets face an “extraordinary era of unpredictability,” William McCarthy, 2023 global chair of the Counselors of Real Estate, said last Friday at a session during the National Association of Realtors®’ (NAR) annual convention in Orlando, Fla. Whether it’s inflation, rising interest rates, geopolitical risks or labor shortages, issues of domestic and international importance have impact on real estate at the local level. “Communities
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Report: FHA Isn’t at Risk if Foreclosures Increase

By Kerry Smith FHA loans – the backbone for U.S. affordable housing – has enough money in reserve (MMI Fund) to weather any recession-caused uptick in foreclosures. WASHINGTON – The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) must issue an annual report to Congress on its financial status, specifically its ability to survive without additional taxpayer money should the economy slow. This week it released its Annual Report to Congress on the financial status of its Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund (MMI Fund), which is used for the FHA Single Family mortgage insurance programs authorized under Title II of the National Housing Act. The
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Homeowners Get Decade-Old Mortgage Bills

By Michael Hill Some homeowners with old second loans are seeing bills now as high as $100K+, even though the lenders demanding payment haven’t contacted them in years. NEW YORK – Rose Prophete thought the second mortgage loan on her Brooklyn home was resolved about a decade ago – until she received paperwork claiming she owed more than $130,000. “I was shocked,” said Prophete, who refinanced her two-family home in 2006, six years after arriving from Haiti. “I don’t even know these people because they never contacted me. They never called me.” Prophete is part of a wave of homeowners
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NW Fla.: Fake Sellers Fool Some RE Agents

By Sandi Kemp A referral “seller” uses fake IDs to prove they own a property and then ask an agent to list it for sale. The usual targets: Out-of-state owners without a mortgage. CRESTVIEW, Fla. – Financial advisors rave about paying off debt, but sometimes being debt-free is being vulnerable. As more real estate transactions are being completed by email or overnight mail, without sellers meeting buyers in person, it’s become easier for criminals to target vacant lots owned by absentee or non-local owners. Recently, a vacant Navarre Beach lot was sold without the knowledge of the owner. The lot
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NAR’s Commercial 2023 Forecast: Small Price Drop

By Kerry Smith Overall, high interest rates may lead to a nationwide price decline – but that will vary by local market. Strong job growth should support prices in many markets. ORLANDO, Fla. – Commercial real estate prices may see a slight decrease nationwide in 2023, but strong job growth will continue to drive demand in many markets, according to National Association of Realtors® (NAR) Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. Yun joined other real estate experts at the recent “2022 NAR NXT, The Realtor Experience” convention in Orlando. The group discussed economic trends and issues affecting the commercial real estate industry.
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