As mortgage rates rise, borrowers may be more likely to consider an adjustable rate mortgage, but ARMs’ sour reputation from the housing crisis may prevent them from taking one. ARMs tend to offer lower introductory rates for a set period of time, such as five or seven years, before resetting higher. Even a decade after the financial crisis, ARMs, which took a lot of blame for rising defaults back then, are still relatively low. The s
The number of homes for sale is growing in some markets and that may be the main factor behind the latest rise in mortgage applications, economists say. Mortgage applications for both home purchases and refinancings increased 2.5 percent last week on a seasonally adjusted basis, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported Wednesday. The rise was fueled entirely by an uptick in home purchase applications. Mortgage applications for home purchase
Investors are bullish that more Americans will choose to be renters, and they’re buying up even more single-family homes to make sure they are ahead of the trend. The number of homes purchased by major investors in 2017 was about 29,000, up 60 percent from the previous year, according to Amherst Capital Management LLC, a real estate investment firm. That is also the first time since 2013 that investors purchased more homes on an annual basis.In
Home prices are rising and making homeowners richer. But the number of home equity lines of credit are barely budging.The overall equity that was tapped in the first quarter of this year was 1.17 percent, the lowest amount in four years, according to Black Knight, a mortgage software and analytics firm.Many homeowners may not realize how rich in equity they really are. “I think the typical American doesn’t have that level of awareness; they
Puerto Rico continues to recover from a devastating hurricane last year that blanketed the island with a wave of destruction. But while the aftermath of Hurricane Maria still lingers, Americans are reportedly showing an increasing interest in buying properties on the island. The number of online searches for Puerto Rican homes for sale is peaking since Maria’s impact and a growing number of potential buyers from the U.S. say they’re looki
Cities along the West Coast, unsurprisingly, have some of the priciest homes in the nation. Among the 10 cities with the highest share of homes worth more than $1 million, four are in California: San Jose, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego, according to a new LendingTree analysis. In these four housing markets, more than 10 percent of homes are valued above $1 million.LendingTree ranked the top 50 cities with the highest shares of million
If your clients are wavering on whether to buy a home, there are several reasons they may want to get more serious about their real estate search, according to MagnifyMoney, a personal finance website. Most importantly, mortgage rates remain historically low—but that isn’t expected to last. They’ve been rising steadily, but rates for the current 30-year fixed-rate mortgage are still well below 5 percent, compared to nearly 19 percent In 1
Student housing, which tends to offer high returns for investors but also requires more intense management and administration, has proven a difficult niche in the multifamily sector in the past. However, institutional investors are increasingly taking on the heavier lift of student housing in order to build a safety net with the healthy returns.Greystar, a multifamily investor and affiliate of The Blackstone Group, recently announced a $4.6 billi
After a brief slowdown in the growth of rental prices, they were back on the rise last month, with the national average rent soaring to an all-time high, RentCafé reports. In June, actual rents in the 250 largest U.S. cities rose 2.9 percent and reached an all-time high of $1,405. Renters, on average, are paying $40 more per month than they did a year ago. Renters in Orlando, Fla., saw one of the largest year-over-year increases, at 8.4 percent.
Waterfront property is a hot commodity, but finding an affordable place with a view can prove challenging. “If you want to be on a larger body of water, you’re typically going to pay more. ... You’ll have more fishing opportunities, boating opportunities, and recreational [and dining] opportunities,” Jim Billig, president of Sportman’s Connection, told realtor.com®. “The smaller lakes ... are going to be more affordable."Realtor.com
This website includes images sourced from third party websites including Adobe, Getty Images, and as otherwise noted.
