Following three consecutive weeks of increases, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage posted a drop this week. The average rate was 3.69%, Freddie Mac reports.“After a yearlong slide, mortgage rates hit a cycle low in September 2019 and have risen in six out of the last nine weeks due to modestly better economic data and trade-related optimism,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “The improvement in sentiment has been one of the ma
Who are your clients these days?Snapshot of BuyersAverage age: 47Median household income: $93,200Living situation: 61% married; 17% single females; 9% single males; 9% unmarried couplesDemographics: 84% white; 7% Hispanic; 5% Asian; 4% African American; 3% otherAverage length of house hunt: 10 weeks (touring a median of 9 homes)Primary reason for purchase: Desire to own a homeMost common house type purchased: Detached single-family home, 1,850 sq
Many home sellers are forgetting to hide their prescription drugs prior to an open house, warn real estate professionals.Besides staging, decluttering, and stowing away jewelry or valuables, home sellers are overlooking the need to tuck prescription drugs away from medicine cabinets and drawers, they say. A recent article at realtor.com® warns of the dangers and calls out specific medications like Oxycontin, attention deficit disorder medic
Tech companies this year have been committing billions to responding to housing shortages in the Golden State. Apple is the latest, announcing this week that it would allocate $2.5 billion to help address the housing availability and affordability crisis in California.Homeownership in the Bay Area is at a seven-year low. Sixty-three percent of millennials surveyed earlier this year said they were considering moving out of California due to high h
Escalating home prices over the past eight years have propelled equity to record highs nationally, CoreLogic reports. Homeowners in nearly every state in the country have seen their equity grow. The West is seeing the largest growth. For example, Idaho homeowners gained an average of $22,000 per borrower; Wyoming owners saw a $20,000 gain; and Nevada owners saw a $17,000 increase, according to CoreLogic’s Home Equity Insights report.Only three
Homeownership may be key to achieving early retirement. A growing movement called “FIRE,” which stands for “Financial Independence, Retire Early”—an idea outlined in author Joe Dominguez’s 1992 bestseller Your Money or Your Life—lays out a way to retire early in your 30s or 40s. The plan focuses on stowing away 40% to 70% of your income, and then making smart investments to grow it. “Owning a home helps you build equity,
From landscaping to exterior finishes, there are plenty of ways to make your listing a standout in curb appeal. Houzz, a home remodeling website, recently showed off a few high-impact ways to boost a home’s exterior aesthetic.Paint the front door. Put a fresh coat of paint on the front door, which is what potential buyers will be seeing first. Also, consider an entirely new color for the front door to get attention. Black is a tr
Down payment assistance programs are helping more consumers to become homeowners, according to a new study. Researchers with CBC Mortgage Agency, a national housing finance group, found that more than nine out of 10 home buyers would not have been able to purchase a home without down payment help. Further, more than half of the 1,100 buyers surveyed that received assistance were racial or ethnic minorities. Also, more than a third say they are th
Opportunity zones have been called one of the biggest real estate tax breaks ever, but investors have been hesitant to take advantage, a new study shows. The tax breaks—which were spawned from the 2017 federal tax overhaul--aim to spur economic growth in nearly 9,000 low-income communities designated across the country. Investors who hold onto the investments for 10 years receive the greatest tax breaks. Read more: Get Up to Speed on O-Zon
Facebook has become the latest company to pledge money to help ease a housing crisis that critics blame big tech for. The social media giant on Tuesday said it would allocate $1 billion in grants, land, and loans to generate more affordable housing in California's Bay Area. The funds will be used to build an estimated 20,000 housing units for middle- to low-income households.In June, Google pledged $1 billion in land and money to build
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