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Granite is overdone in today's kitchen remodel. Laminate offers many options for a modern twist. Contributor: Leigh Ann Fisher
Published: May 16, 2013
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"When it rains, it pours." I faced the awful truth of this recently when the tin roof on my 136-year-old house finally decided it had done its job long enough. I awoke to the sound of a dripping faucet, and when I realized it was in my bedroom, I knew I h Contributor: Willard Jonson
Published: May 16, 2013
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The prices of residential properties in Gurgaon are growing at the rate of 30-40 % annually. New areas like Dwarka Expressway and National Highway 8 are attracting huge investments. Contributor: Pankaj Dhingra
Published: May 15, 2013
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As a volunteer personal finance adviser, I have helped some friends save money, budget and even sell their homes. Last year, I did a few open houses with friends and gained some useful experience that I would like to share. Contributor: Jessica Li
Published: May 15, 2013
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If you wants to be able to sell you home, you should make important repairs. Contributor: Harriet Steinberg
Published: May 15, 2013
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Selling our first home was not a fun experience. And while we’ve only been through the process once so far, it was enough to teach us some valuable lessons about selling a home. Contributor: K. W. Callahan
Published: May 15, 2013
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Whether you are renting a commercial space for your business or are a landlord that rents space to businesses Common Area Maintenance is important to you. A guide to Common Area Maintenance for both the lessor/landlord and the lessee/tenant follows. Contributor: Phillip Gavin Barrington
Published: May 13, 2013
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The latest report from the Center for Housing Policy shows that severe housing costs for working renter households have risen over the past 3 years Contributor: Deidre Woollard
Published: May 13, 2013
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Don't panic. Earnest money is a normal part of buying a house. Educate yourself on why you need to deposit earnest money and what happens to it when it leaves your hands. Contributor: Tim Lucas
Published: May 13, 2013
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Many people like to live in BLoomingdale, IL. It is a special place. Contributor: Teresa (Tracey) Stanisha
Published: May 13, 2013
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Posted To: MND NewsWire The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) has released a brief issues paper voicing objections to HR 1077 , The Consumer Mortgage Choice Act. The bill currently sits in the House Financial Services Committee of which its sponsor Representative Bill Huizenga (R-MI) is a member. The bill amends the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) with respect to disclosures of points and fees for so called "high cost" mortgage loans and has the following key points Excludes from the computation of such points and fees: (1) the amount of any loan level price adjustment payment set by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA, or similar government entity, (2) any compensation paid by a mortgage originator to an employee or creditor; and (3) any escrow for future payment of insurance. Modifies the inclusion in the computation of...(read more)
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Posted To: MBS Commentary MBS Live : MBS Afternoon Market Summary MBS took a running start downhill this morning before reaching the edge of the cliff marked by yesterday morning's "ledge" of prices. This was the 102-28 area hit after yesterday's 8:30am economic data, including the weaker-than-expected Jobless Claims figures. MBS would go on to rally further after Philly Fed data at 10am, resulting in their best day of the month by a wide margin. Staring over the precipice of that same cliff (OK, it's not a very epic sort of cliff by the time we get back down to 102-28 from yesterday's highs at 103-10, but we're going for some continuity with the title here!), MBS turned, mouthed the words "it was never about the data..." and took the leap, ultimately making a splash (lots of them) around the important 102-16 waterline...(read more)
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Posted To: Mortgage Rate Watch Mortgage rates moved higher at their fastest pace in two weeks , after having their best day in more than 6 weeks just yesterday. The net effect for rates is not good, leaving them at their highest levels of the week and very close to 2013 highs seen in early March. While 3.625% remains as the best-execution rate for conventional, 30yr fixed loans, the costs associated with that rate (or whatever rate you're considering) are as high as they've been all week. Further increases from here start to shift the balance toward 3.75%. There's no question that the month of May has been exceptionally volatile for mortgage rates, in the context of the past 2 years anyway. Consider the "cost" side of the mortgage rate equation. Every rate has an associated cost implied. The lower the rate, the higher the...(read more)
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Posted To: MND NewsWire Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) said Thursday it might be time to " dial down the credit stringency ." If the credit scores required for a mortgage returned to the more normal levels of about 720 for conventional loans and 660 for FHA loans, he said, home sales could be 15 to 20 percent higher than they are. During the past four years the average scores for approved conventional loans have been in the 760 to 770 range. About 51 percent of renters could qualify financially to purchase a home compared to 24 percent in 2005 and 33 percent in 2000. While their credit scores are unknown, "there are about 8 million more renters with the income necessary to buy a home now than in 2000, but they are choosing not to or are unable to become a homeowner...(read more)
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Posted To: MND NewsWire A Texas homebuilder will surrender more than $100,000 to the Consumer Finance Protection Agency under a consent order filed on Friday. Paul Taylor, a principal of Paul Taylor Homes Unlimited and Paul Taylor Corporation was accused of receiving kickbacks for referring homebuyers to Benchmark Bank and to Willow Bend Mortgage Company for their mortgages. Under the agreement Taylor is also prohibited from engaging in future real estate settlement services including mortgage origination. Under the consent order, under which the respondents neither accepted nor denied the CFPB findings, the Bureau contends that Taylor and Benchmark jointly created and owned Stratford Mortgage Services and Willow Bend and Taylor created PTH Mortgage Company. Both companies, which the CFPB contends were shams, operated...(read more)
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Posted To: MND NewsWire Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL has asked for an investigation and possible "crackdown" on the manner in which short sales are impacting consumer credit files . Nelson said that short sales are now often reported to the credit agencies using the same code that designates a completed foreclosure. In letters sent earlier this month to Edith Ramirez, Chairwoman of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Richard Cordray, Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Nelson called the credit coding practice "disturbing" and said that there are key differences between a short sale and a foreclosure and both have major but different implications for consumers' credit ratings. "If a short sale is reported as a foreclosure, it could unfairly ruin short sellers' credit scores and make it more...(read more)
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Posted To: MND NewsWire The Consumer Finance Protection Agency (CFPB) reminded lenders today that new Truth in Lending Act (TILA) rules banning mandatory arbitration provisions go into effect on June 1, 2013 so all documentation for new loans should be ready to go on that date. Changes to Regulation Z amendments relating to those provisions were contained in CFPB's final rule on loan originator compensation issued last January. The changes ban "terms that require arbitration or any other non-judicial procedures to resolve any controversy or settle any claims arising out of the transaction" for any closed in loan secured by a dwelling. Loans closed before June 1 or for which applications were received after that date are not covered by the new rule , but all lenders must make sure that all loan documents for loans...(read more)
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Posted To: Pipeline Press Among the nation's 30 largest metro areas included in a recent Zillow study, Pittsburgh (39%), Tampa (33%), New York (30%), Cleveland (29%) and Miami (29%) had the highest percentage of free-and-clear homeowners. It appears that areas with lower home values generally have higher outright homeownership rates, as smaller loan amounts are easier to pay back more quickly, but the age and credit rating of primary borrowers also influence free-and-clear homeownership rates. Zillow found that 65- to 74-year-olds are most likely to be free-and-clear (21%), followed by 74- to 84-year-olds (18%). Interestingly, when examining free-and-clear ownership rates as a percentage of homeowners in various age groups, Zillow found 35% of 20- to 24-year-old homeowners are free of debt. And one last unsurprising...(read more)
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Posted To: MBS Commentary MBS Live : MBS Morning Market Summary Here we are again... All but a few days this week have seen morning sell-offs that have required negative reprice alerts for MBS Live subscribers . As previously intimated, such alerts delay the publication of these free recaps and will be reflected in the afternoon recap. It also means that the price table below is quite a bit out-dated at the moment, as it is automatically generated for this morning recap between 11:00am and 11:10am. Prices are quite a bit lower now and I've posted two more alerts since then. Consumer Sentiment wasn't the only culprit here. Rather, the pre-FOMC " range-finding " is probably what accelerated the losses with the Sentiment data merely serving to reinforce yesterday's highs. We've been trending back in the other direction...(read more)
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Posted To: MBS Commentary The bulk of the week's activity has passed, from a calendar standpoint, and this morning's Consumer Sentiment data is all that's left on the domestic agenda. Even in the overnight session, there are no interesting data sets, and really, no data period, unless you consider Canadian CPI interesting (and we'd recommend against such perversion). These days tend to go one of two ways . More often than not, after big sell-offs and moderate bounces like we've seen this week, these Friday's fizzle mostly sideways as long as the data doesn't get any snowballs rolling. Occasionally, however, Sentiment data, and even other headlines can do just that. So I guess that's Fizzle with a chance of snowballs? Here are a few charts to help frame the trading day ahead. First up, take a look at MBS. Fannie 3.0...(read more)
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