Bill Greiner makes a fairly convincing argument in Forbes that the housing market will be driving real GDP growth upwards of 3% over the next 18 months. He distinguishes between existing home sales and new home sales, and gives an explanation of key factors: employment, confidence, affordability, alternatives, and tax impact. Additionally, he looks at…

Bill Greiner makes a fairly convincing argument in Forbes that the housing market will be driving real GDP growth upwards of 3% over the next 18 months. He distinguishes between existing home sales and new home sales, and gives an explanation of key factors: employment, confidence, affordability, alternatives, and tax impact. Additionally, he looks at…

The mortgage industry has been moving towards e-closings for quite a while now (as this blog has covered before), and there are great hopes that this will streamline and simplify the process. However, before we get all the way there, things may take a step backwards. New federal disclosure rules, though designed to simplify financial…

As this blog reported a few days ago, mortgage application rates were relatively flat in total, but underlying that data were some big swings that didn’t show up in the average. These changes are particularly surprising given the rate of home building starts and U.S. consumer confidence. The current thinking from the Mortgage Bankers Association…

Jeffrey Dorfman, a contributor to Forbes magazine, published an opinion piece yesterday afternoon title, “The Sneaky Path We Took To A Socialist Mortgage Market”. His essential premise is that when the Fannie and Freddie bailout occurred under the Bush administration, it was viewed as a first step towards fully privatizing the market; however, under the…

Despite their reputation as a generation of renters, the truth of the matter is that many Millennials are buying homes. And they’re not just buying, they’re buying smarter than a lot of people did in the past. To be sure, they seem to be taking longer than previous generations to buy their first home, but…

Despite their reputation as a generation of renters, the truth of the matter is that many Millennials are buying homes. And they’re not just buying, they’re buying smarter than a lot of people did in the past. To be sure, they seem to be taking longer than previous generations to buy their first home, but…

For professionals in the housing industry, from real-estate agents to loan officers, and everywhere in between, the more successful you become, the harder it can be to find time to take a vacation. But, you still really should. In April’s issue of Realtor Mag, Michelle Hoffman wrote a great article on how to plan (and…

For professionals in the housing industry, from real-estate agents to loan officers, and everywhere in between, the more successful you become, the harder it can be to find time to take a vacation. But, you still really should. In April’s issue of Realtor Mag, Michelle Hoffman wrote a great article on how to plan (and…

CNBC reported yesterday that mortgage application rates are basically unchanged at an increase of 0.1%, citing the Mortgage Bankers Association. However, hidden in that no-news number was a little bit of actual news, refinances were up substantially, with a week-over-week increase of 3%, contrasted with a 4% decline in purchase applications. Apparently the word on…