Borrowers got stuck with higher mortgage rates again this week. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage climbed for the second consecutive week, averaging 4.6 percent. Mortgage rates are now at their fourth highest level of the year, Freddie Mac reports.“The higher rate environment, coupled with the ongoing lack of affordable inventory, has led to a drag on existing-home sales in the last few months,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist.
Commercial real estate giant Cushman & Wakefield made its debut on the stock market on Thursday, with shares jumping up to 7 percent in its initial public offering on the first day of trading. Cushman ended Thursday trading at $17.81 per share on the New York Stock Exchange.“Being public gives us a currency where we can accelerate our growth even above where it has been these days,” Brett White, CEO of Cushman, told CNBC.The company offe
The Federal Reserve decided Wednesday to hold off on raising its short-term interest rates. But it hinted that it likely will deliver its third interest rate increase of the year at its next meeting in late September. The Fed’s key rate does not have a direct impact on mortgage rates, but it usually influences them.“Economic activity has been rising at a strong rate,” the Fed’s statement read. Economic output rose at a 4.1 percent annual
Housing inventories in high-priced markets are gradually making a turnaround. One-third of the largest 45 U.S. metros saw a yearly increase in housing inventory in July, realtor.com® reports. In some markets, the inventory increase has been dramatic. For example, in Silicon Valley, the San Jose metro posted a 44 percent increase in inventory compared to a year ago.The greater number of choices, however, doesn’t mean lower prices. The median li
There must be a remodeling bug flying around Oklahoma City. The area ranked the highest of the 50 largest U.S. cities by volume of home improvement loans issued to homeowners, according to a new analysis by LendingTree.San Jose, Calif., ranked second on LendingTree’s list. Analysts say the city’s high home prices and tight inventory have benefited current homeowners, who are seeing a rise in equity that they can then apply to bettering their
Renters are struggling to catch a break. In seven of the largest U.S. cities, the average household would need to make at least six figures to comfortably afford the rent on a two-bedroom apartment, according to a new study by SmartAsset, a personal financial website. SmartAsset researchers looked at how much it takes to afford average rental rates in the nation’s 25 largest cities.Households that spend more than 30 percent of their incomes on
Smoking in a home can reduce that property’s resale value by up to 29 percent, according to realtor.com®. And home buyers who fall for a home that reeks of smoke shouldn’t assume the odor will go away as soon as the smoker moves out.Tobacco-specific nitrosamines and nitrous acid can cling to walls and other surfaces within the house. “You could breathe in several hundred nanograms of these carcinogens long after the last cigarette burned o
The U.S. Senate approved a bill Tuesday to keep the National Flood Insurance Program operating for four more months. President Donald Trump is expected to sign the bill, which cleared the House last week, into law before midnight Tuesday, when the program expires.“We applaud lawmakers for taking this needed action to prevent disruptions to closings in thousands of communities across the country,” Elizabeth Mendenhall, president of the Natio
Despite being strapped with student loan debt, millennials are surpassing older generations when it comes to money management habits like saving and budgeting, a recent Bank of America survey shows.According to the Better Money Habits Millennial Report published earlier this year, 63 percent of millennials (ages 23 to 37) are saving. Fifty-seven percent say they have a savings goal, as compared to the 42 percent of Gen Xers and 42 percent of
Owners can often conserve more money once housing costs and living necessities are all covered. However, a new study shows those who rent can barely get by in some cities.PropertyShark and RentCafe teamed up for a study on discretionary income and analyzed the top 50 largest cities where an owner or a renter can save the most money after paying living costs. For living costs, estimates for food, health care, entertainment, and transportation were
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