Tag Archives: Mortgage Rates

Investor participation dropped drastically in July, reversing a trend of long-term growth in investor purchases of residential properties. According to the report, investor activity in the housing market fell to 21.9 percent of all transactions in July, down from 23.5 percent in June. July's decrease also established a two-month trend of declines from May's two-year peak of 25.3 percent.

This year's second quarter saw the largest quarterly growth in home prices in nearly seven years, according to FHFA's purchase-only home price index (HPI). The agency reported house prices rose 1.8 percent from the year's first quarter to the second quarter-the largest growth since the fourth quarter of 2005. In addition, distressed sales in the market fell to 29.1 percent, a sharp drop from the first quarter's 38.3 percent share.

According to Freddie Mac's weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS), the 30-year fixed rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 3.66 percent (0.7 point) for the week ending August 23, up from 3.62 percent the previous week. The 15-year FRM also slid up, averaging 2.89 percent (0.6 point). A week ago, the 15-year fixed averaged 2.88 percent.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is on a roll lately. On Friday, the agency offered up rules to reduce interest rates, do away with points and fees, and screen mortgage loan officers. In the first of a slew of new rulemaking proposals, In the first of a slew of new rulemaking proposals, the CFPB would require lenders to make available loans that are stripped of their origination points and discount fees for certain consumers. The proposals would also require background checks for loan officers and bar arbitration clauses for credit insurance practices.

Freddie Mac released its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) Thursday, showing that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) inched up to 3.62 percent (0.6 point) for the week ending August 16. The 30-year fixed averaged 3.59 percent the previous week. The 15-year FRM also increased, rising to 2.88 percent (0.6 point) from 2.84 percent previously.

Despite a dip from June, July marked the seventh straight month for year-over-year increases in home sales in Southern California, DataQuick reported Tuesday. A total of 20,588 new and resale houses and condos sold in the region during the month, down 6.7 percent from June up 13.8 percent from July 2011. The month's sales were 19.4 percent lower than the average July total since 1988, when DataQuick's statistics begin.

Limited inventory may be boosting home prices, but buyer choices are stifled in an increasing number of markets, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported Thursday. The association's latest quarterly report showed distressed homes accounted for 26 percent of Q2 sales, down from 33 percent in Q2 2011. NAR president Moe Veissi what is needed now is additional inventory in the lower price ranges, so the association hopes banks will be releasing more foreclosure inventory into the market.

The latest National Delinquency Survey from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) showed that delinquencies increased in the second quarter of 2012, a shift anticipated by the association. The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties increased to a seasonally adjusted rate of 7.58 percent as of the end of Q2, an increase from 7.40 in Q1. The second quarter's increased rate was still down from 8.44 percent at the same time in 2011.

Strong employment reports boosted mortgage rates back up for the second week in a row, Freddie Mac reported Thursday. The GSE's Primary Mortgage Market Survey show the 30-year fixed averaging 3.59 percent (0.6 point) for the week ending August 9, an increase from 3.55 percent the previous week. The 15-year fixed also posted gains, averaging 2.84 percent (0.6 point) for the week, up from 2.83 percent a week ago.

HARP-assisted refinances drove record refinance activity in the month of June, FHFA revealed Tuesday. The agency released its Refinance Report for June 2012, showing that refinance volume remained strong in June as mortgage rates fell to all-time lows. An estimated 33 percent of refinance volume was done through HARP, the highest percentage since HARP's inception. The report revealed that at the end of June, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae had refinanced 422,969 loans through HARP in 2012, more than the estimated total of 400,000 for all of 2011. This brings the total number of HARP refinances by the GSEs to 1.4 million.