Mortgage Rates Drop to Three-Month Low

According to a survey conducted by Freddy Mac, 30-year-fixed-rate mortgage rates were 5.12% during the week ending August 20th. Freddie Mac's previous survey had indicated that rates were 5.29% for the prior week.

Low rates, coupled with the tax credit for first-time homebuyers are making it a great time to purchase a new home. But you must HURRY! The tax credit is only available on homes purchased before December 1st.

If you are looking for a new home in a GREAT location, come see us in Linden!

http://www.raymushomes.com/countryfaire.html

Good News! New Home Sales Rise 11% in June!

The AP is reporting that new home sales rose 11% in June, more than any month in the past eight years! Read the article below....

http://tinyurl.com/elevenpercent

Is it possible that waiting for prices to fall could price you out of a home?

See this blog post by Ted C. Jones, PhD, Senior Vice President—Chief Economist, Stewart Title Guaranty Company.

http://blog.stewart.com/?p=68

Loan Rates - Where do you get your information?

If you are in the market for a new home and waiting for interest rates to fall, you may want to read the article below. We all want to get the 'best' deal. That said, no one ever knows when the 'best' deal might come. Could we lose more than we gain by waiting? Perhaps. Read on.....

By The Time You Read About Low Mortgage Rates, It Was Already Too Late To Get Them
Thursday morning, homeowners in different parts of the country awoke to find similar-sounding newspaper headlines:

Rates on 30-year mortgages sink to 4.78%, a new low (LA Times)
Mortgage rates at record low for 2nd week (Miami Herald)
Mortgages hit another record low (San Francisco)

The underlying story was that Freddie Mac's weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey showed the lowest, average 30-year fixed rate mortgage in its 38-year, rate-tracking history.
Once again, however, the headlines came too late for homeowners.

Prior to Thursday's market open, mortgage markets had already worsened from their record-setting levels. Slowly at first, and then with momentum. The shift pressured rates higher so that when lenders issued their Thursday morning rate sheets, most showed an 1/8 increase from Wednesday's close.

The negative momentum carried into the afternoon, too, forcing a second increase of an 1/8 percent.

The Freddie Mac survey may have been accurate when the sun came up Thursday, but by the time the sun went down, it wasn't even close. It's why you can't do your rate shopping by watching newspaper headlines. Mortgage markets are volatile and rates often change without notice.

Thursday, they did it twice.

Thanks to Daniel Sosa at PMZ Home Loans for the article
Daniel Sosa (209) 298-8017 dsosa@pmzhomeloans.com

Look What We've Been Up To!

We just completed our newest model, The Villa. This 3 bedroom, 2 bath home is just the right size at 1372 square feet. This model sits on one of our average-sized home sites which is approximately 7500 square feet. This is country living!

I wanted to share some of the interior photos of this new Villa. I will post exterior photos in the days to come.

What's Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week

A friend of mine in the mortgage industry sends me updates to his blog, where he posts about daily mortgage rates and financial news.

Below is today's update, which I found quite interesting. I thought it was necessary to share with others!

Mortgage markets scored big gains last week, sparked by the Federal Reserves pledge to buy $750 billion more mortgage-backed bonds in 2009. Conforming mortgage rates fell on the week, overall. But Federal Reserve intervention wasn't the only good news for rate shoppers last week. New evidence showed -- for the time being, at least -- that the U.S. economy may be reversing direction:

Homebuilders are breaking ground on new homes again http://tinyurl.com/dd2bvw
First-time jobless claims are falling http://tinyurl.com/d2pnep
Inflation is present and, therefore, deflation is not http://tinyurl.com/dyo3nq

Should the economy continue trend stronger through the summer, it will likely fuel stock market gains, drawing cash away from mortgage bonds. This would lead mortgage rates higher -- perhaps for good. Today's levels are artificially low, after all, supported by government intervention more than economic fundamentals. After the Fed's Wednesday afternoon announcement, rates fell to all-time lows before recovering sharply into the weekend on economic optimism and fears of inflation. This week, the trend higher may continue….

You can read his full blog post at http://www.loanapproval411.com/info_01/page_1.rad
If you have any loan questions please call Daniel Sosa at PMZ Home Loans, (209) 298-8017

NEW FHA LIMITS HAVE ARRIVED!

In order to help stimulate the housing market the Fair Housing Administration's loan limits have been increased, making it easier for people in San Joaquin County to qualify for a home purchase. The new FHA limit is $488,750 up from 362,790. According to the National Association of Realtors President, Dick Gaylord, this loan limit increase will help an additional 138,000 Americans buy a home. FHA loans were used heavily during a recession in the 80's to help stabilize falling prices and help people get the necessary financing. If that holds true, as more and more people take advantage of the current market conditions, home prices will gradually rise once again. So, if you are on the fence waiting, now is the time to buy.

If you are interested in a new Raymus home, give me a call or come visit us in Linden.