May 9, 2011 (Shirley Allen) Fannie Mae announced the opening of its ninth help center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The new Philadelphia Mortgage Help Center will provide free education and counseling services to struggling homeowners in the Philadelphia area. The Center was developed in partnership with Consumer Counseling Service of Delaware County, local community and elected [...]
May 5, 2011 (Shirley Allen) Freddie Mac today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), which shows mortgage rates drifting lower with the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage matching the yearly low of 4.71 percent, and the 15-year fixed hitting a new yearly low of 3.89 percent as a weakening economy continues to cause [...]
May 4, 2011 (Shirley Allen) According to the data collected on May 3, 2011, for LendingTree’s Weekly Mortgage Rate Pulse, average home loan rates offered by network lenders was 4.90 percent (5.10% APR) for 30-year fixed mortgages, which is down from 4.97 percent from the previous week, 4.10 percent (4.41% APR) for 15-year fixed mortgages, [...]
May 4, 2011(Chris Moore) The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending April 29, 2011. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 4.0 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from last week, primarily due to an increase in refinance activity as mortgage [...]
May 4, 2011 (Jeff Alan) Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors (NAR), says existing home sales “would be stronger if tight mortgage lending criteria returned to normal, safe standards.” The statement was made in NAR’s recently released Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) report, which stood at 94.1 in March, but was [...]
May 4, 2011 (Shirley Allen) The number of proprietary loan modifications declined in the first quarter of 2011 according to HOPE NOW, the voluntary, private sector alliance of mortgage servicers, investors, mortgage insurers and non-profit counselors. The organization reports that 209,806 homeowners received permanent, proprietary loan modifications compared to 261,445 in the fourth quarter of [...]
May 3, 2011 (Chris Moore) Freddie Mac is extending its full menu of disaster relief policies for borrowers whose homes were damaged or destroyed by the recent storms in the South that are located in counties that the President has declared to be Major Disaster Areas. Mortgage servicers at their discretion can reduce or suspend [...]
May 3, 2011 (Chris Moore) Foreclosure inventory stood at an all-time high at the end of March according the March Mortgage Monitor released by Lender Processing Services (LPS). At 2.2 million properties, foreclosure inventories are 8 times historic norms. Delinquencies continued to decline to the lowest levels since 2008. Read more...
May 2, 2011 (Jeff Alan) Homeownership rates in the United States continued to decline and now stand at levels not seen since the end of 1998. The Census Bureau reports that 66.4 percent of Americans owned homes, down from 67.1 percent the year before, and down from 69.2 percent seen during the housing boom. Read [...]
