Federal Tax Credit Used as Down Payment

May 22, 2009 by admin · 9 Comments 

At last week’s NAR Mid-Year Conference in Washington, HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan, said that the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) is going to permit its lenders to allow home buyers to “monetize” the $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers, to be used as a down payment. In his remarks to Realtors, Secretary Donovan indicated that [...]

NAR Believes Real Estate Slump Ending

May 14, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment 

A couple of weeks ago, I referenced a cautiously optimistic outlook on the economy (”Real Estate Slump End in Sight?”) by NAR’s former Chief Economist John Tuccillo. At the end of last week, John Tuccillosounded even more positive: “Real estate professionals who are in this for the long haul are back in business in a [...]

Real Estate Market Boosted by First Time Buyers

May 6, 2009 by admin · 2 Comments 

The National Association of REALTORS (NAR) says over 50 percent of March’s home sales were tied to first-time buyers, many of whom snapped up foreclosed homes and other distressed properties. Experts believe getting first-time buyers off the sidelines to take advantage of historically low interest rates and federal tax credits will reduce the glut of [...]

Real Estate Slump End in Sight?

May 1, 2009 by admin · 7 Comments 

It’s the 10 trillion dollar question and there are quite a few opinions: Over this past weekend, former NAR Chief Economist John Tuccillo posted a weblog entry (“Is the End in Sight?”) with a good analysis of several factors in the current economy and housing market. He seems generally hopeful. Here is one of his [...]

Nationally Pending Home Sales Are Up

April 23, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment 

From NAR’s Research Division this past week: “Pending home sales have edged up, hinting at a possible pickup of sales activity in coming months, according to the National Association of Realtors. The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in February, rose 2.1 percent to 82.1 from a reading of 80.4 [...]

So, What’s Up With This $8,000 Tax Credit?

February 17, 2009 by admin · 1 Comment 

Last week, as the world knows by now, Congress passed a rather large Economic Stimulus Bill, with President Obama’s signature expected this week. One of its features – a tax credit of up to $8,000 for “first-time home buyers” within a certain income range – is included. It would be incredibly bold of me to [...]

Pending Home Sales Holding in Stable Range

December 18, 2008 by admin · Leave a Comment 

According to the NAR: Pending home sales eased against a deteriorating economic backdrop but remain in a stable range, according to the latest national survey. The Pending Home Sales Index slipped 0.7% to 88.9 from an upwardly revised reading of 89.5 in September, and is 1.0% below October 2007 when it was 89.8. Lawrence Yun, [...]

Commercial Real Estate and Relief

November 21, 2008 by admin · Leave a Comment 

The “NAR released a statement this week regarding the Commercial Leading Indicator, a tool that assesses market behavior in thirteen major commercial real estate sectors. Lawrence Yun, NAR Chief Economist, said all components of the CLI were down with the exception of personal income, but he commented about an encouraging possibility – that the Treasury [...]

Some Believe That National Real Estate Market Rebounding

October 25, 2008 by admin · Leave a Comment 

Nationally, existing-home sales increased in September, as buyers responded to improved housing affordability conditions, according to the National Association of REALTORS (NAR). NAR President Richard F. Gaylord, a broker with RE/MAX Real Estate Specialists in Long Beach, Calif., said low home prices and low interest rates have been attracting buyers. “This is the first time [...]

HUD Releases New FHA, Conforming Loan Limits – Home Sales Stable

March 10, 2008 by admin · Leave a Comment 

Last week, HUD published new FHA and conforming loan limits, based on median home prices as mandated by the Economic Stimulus Act signed by President Bush in February. The new loan limits for FHA, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac are now calculated at 125% of the HUD published median prices, with a floor of $271,050 [...]

NAR Wants Higher Loan Limits

January 21, 2008 by admin · Leave a Comment 

The National Association of Realtors has called on Congress and the Bush administration to increase the loan limits for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from the current ceiling of $417,000 to $625,000. National Association of Realtors President Dick Gaylord noted, “This change will permit more families to enter the housing market by making more mortgages [...]

Nashville Mortgage Rates Hit Two-Year Low!

December 3, 2007 by admin · Leave a Comment 

The 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to a more than two-year low in the week ended Nov. 29, slipping to 6.1% from 6.2% the prior week. Freddie Mac further reported that the 15-year fixed loan rate fell to 5.73% from 5.83% over that same time span, and that interest on five-year adjustable-rate mortgages dipped to [...]