The boom in prices will impact middle-class families whose income can't keep paceSince 2014, the U.S. has gained 346 new $1 million neighborhoods, which can be a good thing — or a not-so-good thing, depending on how you look at it.According to Zillow, nearly one in 20 residential ZIP codes fall into this category because 10 percent of the homes in the area are worth $1 million or more.On one hand, the upshot of highly valued homes is due to t
Developers are turning to wood framing as a more affordable building material, but officials are warning of some dangers after reports of several wood-frame buildings catching fire across the country.Wood framing is increasingly being used in apartment construction and is largely considered safe once construction is completed. But wood framing can be vulnerable to fires before the interior wallboard and other safety features—like sprinklers and
Although more homeowners are gaining equity across the country, owners in certain areas are remaining underwater in large numbers. More than 5.4 million U.S. properties remained seriously underwater at the end of the second quarter, according to ATTOM Data Solutions’ Q2 2017 U.S. Home Equity & Underwater report. A property is considered seriously underwater when the combined loan amount secured on the property is at least 25 percent higher
Fixed-rate mortgages continued to drop this week, lowering borrowing costs for home buyers.“Following a mild decline last week, the 10-year Treasury yield rose 1 basis point this week,” says Sean Becketti, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “The 30-year mortgage rate similarly remained relatively flat, falling just 1 basis point to 3.89 percent. Mortgage rates are continuing to hold at low levels amidst ongoing economic uncertainty.”Freddie
For-sale-by-owners tend to sell their homes for lower prices than homes sold through traditional agents via the MLS, and in many cases below the average differential represented by the prevailing commission rate, according to a new study by Collateral Analytics.The study examined the price differences between homes sold through traditional agents versus those sold by FSBOs from 2016 to the first half of 2017.Some homeowners may be tempted to tr
Mortgage rates dropped to the lowest averages since November, but that did little to entice home buyers and refinancers last week.The Mortgage Bankers Association reports that total mortgage application volume—including for refinancing and home purchases—eked out just a 0.1 percent week-over-week increase. Volume is nearly 22 percent lower than a year ago.The drop in loan demand is coming at a time when mortgage rates are falling, which usual
Homeowners should be feeling richer. At the end of the second quarter, more than 14 million U.S. properties were considered equity rich. (That means the combined loan amount secured by the property was 50 percent or less of the estimated market value of the property.)Nearly 320,000 properties joined the “equity rich” category during the second quarter over the first quarter. Further, the number of equity rich properties is now up more than 1.
Contradicting previous research, new study finds FSBOs sell at discountKey Takeaways Agents tend to achieve higher sales prices for properties than comparable FSBO listings, enough to offset their commission fee, according to a recent analysis.Academic research has often cast doubt on the value of real estate agents, but a new study will come as music to their ears.It suggests that homeowners will net roughly the same proceeds whether they sel
Housing shortage in America might intensify, says NAR chief economistKey Takeaways In July, new residential construction starts slipped down to a rate of 1,223,000 units -- a 4.1 percent month-over-month decrease.June’s housing starts report was heralded as “welcome news” by National Association of Realtors (NAR) Chief Economist Lawrence Yun, who said increasing residential construction was the key to lowering home prices.This month, howeve
National family median income rose to $71,529, but it's still not enough to keep up with rising home pricesKey Takeaways Home prices rose 6.2 percent quarter-over-quarter to $255,600 -- a new peak.The housing market saw a series of ups and downs in Q2 2017, the majority of which were largely driven by low inventory unable to meet the demand of would-be buyers. This imbalance drove home prices to rise 6.2 percent, easily eclipsing the previous Q3
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