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Report: Secondary Market Key to Promoting Housing Affordability

The key to a viable, accessible mortgage market lays in the structure of the secondary market, according to opinions expressed by the Center for American Progress, a policy think tank, and the National Council of La Raza, a Hispanic advocacy group. In a report, the two groups propose ways the secondary market can accomplish the goals of accessibility and affordability.

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Fannie Mae: Confidence in Home Price Gains Reaches Record Levels

Reports of strong home price gains drove confidence in the housing market up to record levels in May, Fannie Mae reported. According to the GSE's May 2013 National Housing Survey, Americans expressed record confidence in price gains, with 55 percent--a survey high--saying they believe prices will go up in the next year. In addition, the average 12-month home price change expectation was 3.9 percent, the highest level in the survey's history and a leap over April's 2.7 percent forecast.

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Firm Forecasts 8% Increase in Prices, Decrease in Mortgage Rates

The pace at which home prices are rising should moderate later this year, with home prices forecast to rise by 8 percent this year then increase by another 4 percent in 2014, according to an analysis from Capital Economics. Although the research firm agrees with analysts who have warned recent home price gains are not sustainable, housing bubble concerns were described as ""premature."" Unlike other projections, the firm also doesn't expect to see a swift increase in mortgage rates over the next year.

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Kozeny & McCubbin Appoints Two Members at Firm

Kozeny & McCubbin, LC announced two attorneys were named members of the firm. Sara Fievet Knittel will serve as the firm's compliance attorney and manage the legal compliance processes of the firm. Martin W. Blanchard also became a member of the firm and was appointed to serve as the head of the litigation department for the Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Nebraska offices.

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Florida Passes Expedited Foreclosure Bill

Florida Gov. Rick Scott passed a bill Friday he said will help the state's housing market and in turn the state's overall economy. ""This bill expedites an existing voluntary alternative court process for defaulted home loans in uncontested cases when the borrower and the bank both seek a more speedy finality,"" Scott said. Florida H.B. 87 was introduced in January by Rep. Kathleen Passidomo (R-Naples) and passed both state legislatures in May with bipartisan support.

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Commentary: Does Homeownership Cause Unemployment?

Can the drop in homeownership be good news? When President George W. Bush followed his predecessor Bill Clinton in pushing homeownership, one loud dissenter was British economist Andrew Oswald who argued that far from improving the economy, as Bush (and Clinton before him) said it would, homeownership hurts the economy in the long run. Oswald produced data to show that every five percent rise in homeownership results in a one percentage point increase in the unemployment rate.

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Freddie Mac: 28% of Refinancers Shortened Loan Term in Q1

Freddie Mac released the results of its first-quarter 2013 refinance analysis, showing more refinancers are interested in shortening their loans. Of borrowers who refinanced during Q1, 28 percent shortened their loan term, Freddie Mac reported--up from 27 percent in Q4 2012. The majority (68 percent) elected to keep the same term as the loan they had paid off, while 3 percent chose to lengthen their loan term.

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Survey: 67% of Renters Cite Lack of Assets as Hurdle to Homeownership

A little more than half of American renters believe owning a home is a more sensible choice than living in rental housing, according to a research study from Fannie Mae's Economic & Strategic Research Group. At 57 percent, young renters (ages 18-34) were more likely to answer that owning is the better choice. Out of those who would prefer to own, many find themselves blocked by a number of hurdles. The most commonly cited problem was a lack of assets; 67 percent of aspiring owners have less than $10,000 in assets.

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