From the category archives:

Market Update

No “green shoots” in employment

by Morgan on June 21, 2009

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Unemployment rose in nearly every state in the nation in May, with many reaching record unemployment levels not seen since 1976. So much for green shoots. If 70% of our economy is driven by consumer spending, and [...]

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California 50 days from government meltdown

by Morgan on June 11, 2009

California has 50 days until the government melts down under the pressure of the $24.3 billion budget gap. That according to the state’s controller, John Chiang. And the problem isn’t getting any better. State revenues were off nearly 18% in May the state was off an additional billion dollars from the current budget. [...]

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The mortgage industry changed in the last year. Most companies have found themselves under significant financial pressure. Some mortgage firms have disappeared. Others have grown and expanded their market share by acquiring struggling competitors.
The number of mortgage loan originations has also been on the rise, allowing lenders to add to the growth from mergers and [...]

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U.S. home values fell for the ninth consecutive quarter during the first three months of 2009 leaving one in five American homeowners with negative equity in their homes.  The first quarter Zillow Home Value Index fell to $182,378, a decline of 14.2 percent over the same period in 2008. The last time the market was [...]

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Foreclosure activity sets records in 1Q 2009

by Jay Hammond on April 16, 2009

One in every 159 U.S. housing units have received a foreclosure notice already this year.  Foreclosure filings during the first quarter of 2009 increased 24 percent over the same quarter in 2008, according to the U.S. Foreclosure Market Report. The pace also appears to be increasing with 17 percent more default notices, auction sale notices [...]

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Changing the jumbo mortgage game

by Jay Hammond on April 15, 2009

Americans are spending less on luxuries these days. That includes luxury houses. The number of jumbo mortgage originations declined an estimated 70 percent nationwide during 2008. The most recent Affluent Market Tracking Study conducted semi-annually by the American Affluence Research Center, reveals that among luxury consumers, plans to purchase a primary residence of a vacation [...]

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Mortgage loan applications & rates increase

by Jay Hammond on April 9, 2009

The volume of mortgage loan applications filed during the week ending April 3, 2009, increased by more than 4 percent last week, according to the Weekly Applications Survey from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).  In addition, the proportion of applications for home purchases compared to refinancing applications also grew.
The Market Composite Index, which measures loan [...]

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Americans want to be homeowners

by Jay Hammond on March 24, 2009

“It’s not all doom and gloom. We found Americans are optimistic about homeownership despite concerns,” said Steve Berkowitz, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Move, Inc. “They’re doing everything they can, from reducing discretionary spending to pay their mortgages, to planning to take advantage of the administration’s new program to stop foreclosures. They’re also working with [...]

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“Borrowers are increasingly taking advantage of the low mortgage rates available in the market today,” said Tom Lund, Executive Vice President, Single-Family Mortgage Business for Fannie Mae and one of four top execs recieving retention bonuses. “We anticipate that volumes will increase even more as millions of additional homeowners become eligible to refinance under the [...]

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Home Values Lost $1.4 Trillion during 4Q 2008

by Jay Hammond on February 3, 2009

Americans lost more, in terms of home values, during the final quarter of 2008 than in all of 2007. According to Zillow Real Estate Markets Report, home values fell 11.6 percent or $1.4 trillion during the eighth consecutive quarter of declines.
The declines mean that U.S. homeowners lost a cumulative $3.3 trillion in home values during [...]

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