Market Trends

If you are looking for a home for summers or a permanent residence, now may be the time to get into the market, as the number of listings on lakes has jumped dramatically this year.

"We are starting to see some patterns that show where the U.S. housing market is cooling off and how it's hitting homeowners based on some key metrics. It looks so far—and it's important to stress, so far—to be having more impact in places with the highest housing costs and less impact elsewhere," said Rob Barber, CEO at ATTOM.

In today’s real estate market, every dollar counts, especially for low- to moderate-income homebuyers. Guild Mortgage’s new product buys down the mortgage interest rate for the first year and only requires a 1% down payment.

Homeowners holding onto mortgage rates below 6% are fueling a nationwide shortage of new listings, as a new report from Redfin revealed more sellers are staying put due to increasing rates and high home prices.

“The Committee seeks to achieve maximum employment and inflation at the rate of 2% over the longer run. In support of these goals, the Committee decided to maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at 5.00% to 5.25%,” the Fed said in a prepared statement.

Despite a rise in overall mortgage apps week-over-week, the MBA reports that mortgage rates are a percentage point higher than a year ago, and when combined with low for-sale inventory, is constraining home buying activity in many markets.

According to Mortgage Capital Trading, rate/term refinance volume was down 21.88%, cash-out refinance volume was down 21.77%, and lock activity in total was down 15.87% in total compared to April.

“Our residents deserve opportunities to build their credit from on-time rent payments that give them access to more financial services such as favorable interest rates on auto loans,” said Matt DeGraw, President, Bridge Property Management.

A new LendingTree survey revealed how homebuyers who negotiate a lower APR could greatly impact how much they pay over the lifetime of their mortgage, with 39% of respondents saying they negotiated the initial APR or refinance rate on their most recent home purchase, while 63% report negotiating the purchase price.

The MBA reports that mortgage credit availability fell for the third straight month in May, dropping to levels last recorded in January 2013.