Ron T. Weems Jr.

Mortgage applications decreased 6.2 percent last week compared to the previous week on a seasonally adjusted basis from 425.0 to 398.6, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association weekly survey. The index decreased 7.2 percent on an unadjusted basis and was down 41.3 percent compared with the same week a year ago. Mortgage rates were down slightly, so most of the decrease was in mortgages to purchase homes. The refinance index increased 2.6 percent, while the purchase index decreased 12.6 percent. Mortgage rates remained above 6 percent, despite a recent cut in the Federal Reserve’s key rate: 30-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 6.16

Organizations representing the rental side of the real estate market are lobbying against proposals for home buyer assistance. The National Multi Housing Council (NMHC) and the National Apartment Association (NAA) both oppose proposals for a federally financed interest rate buy down on mortgages or any overturn on bans on seller-financed down payment programs. "The government should not be using taxpayer dollars to sustain inflated housing prices. When prices return to market levels, buyers will return. Such a resettlement will not only restore affordability to the housing sector, it will also put it on a much stronger footing going forward,”

Mortgage applications increased slightly last week, rising 2.2 percent on an adjusted basis from 455.4 to 454.4, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s weekly survey. On an unadjusted basis, the index increased 2.2 percent, but was down 28.6 percent compared to the same week a year ago. Most of the increase was in home purchases. That index rose 3.2 percent, while the index of refinances increased only 0.9 percent. Mortgage rates were down slightly: 30-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 5.99 percent from 6.07 percent. 15-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 5.71 percent from 5.82 percent. 1-year ARMs remained unchanged

Pending home sales activity surged as buyers took advantage of low home prices and affordable interest rates, according to the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®. The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in August, jumped 7.4 percent to 93.4 from an upwardly revised reading of 87.0 in July, and is 8.8 percent higher than August 2007 when it stood at 85.8. The index is at the highest level since June 2007 when it stood at 101.4. Improved Affordability Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, says home buyers were responding to improved affordability. “What we’re seeing is the momentum of people taking

Citigroup Inc. acquired the majority of Wachovia Corp. for about $2 billion Monday in a government-engineered takeover that creates the nation’s third-largest bank. Citigroup will inherit a $312 billion mortgage portfolio. Citigroup’s future losses on these loans will be capped at $42 billion, with the government agreeing to absorb any additional losses. In return, the government got $12 billion worth of warrants for Citigroup stock and preferred shares. Over the past year, Citigroup has been clobbered by more than $40 billion in write-downs and other losses stemming from its exposure to rapidly devaluing securities. Citigroup executives

Once a financial rescue plan is executed, legal and political observers expect Capitol Hill legislators to turn their attention to tightening the regulation of mortgage lending—an especially obvious target due to the fact that so much of the troubled debt handcuffing the nation's banks originated with the lax practices of mortgage brokers and lenders. In addition, lawmakers may try to overhaul the patchwork of government authority over the nation's banks, which are currently regulated by four agencies with overlapping jurisdictions: the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., the Office of Thrift Supervision, and the

The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® is urging members to call on national lawmakers to pass the financial rescue bill that was defeated by the House of Representatives Monday. NAR President Dick Gaylord also asked members to educate themselves and their customers on how the rescue bill can help the housing market and the economy, in general. "This is a critical time for our nation, and REALTORS® everywhere need to call on Congress to enact a recovery plan that will end the economic crisis we are facing," NAR President Dick Gaylord said. Despite what's been reported in some news outlets, the laws and policies that Congress is considering

Congress is reportedly close to passing the $700 billion rescue of Wall Street. The compromise draft of the bill, which is being hammered out Thursday, is likely to include provisions sought by Democrats to give Congress greater authority over the bailout and a plan to allow homeowners to renegotiate their mortgages so they have lower monthly payments. The core of the plan lets the U.S. government buy up soured assets of shaky financial firms and take an ownership stake in the troubled companies to prevent them from going under and leading the country into a severe depression. President Bush acknowledged in a prime-time television address Wednesday

Freddie Mac reports a decline in the 30-year fixed mortgage rate to 5.78 percent during the week ended Sept. 18 from 5.93 percent the prior week, marking the lowest level in seven months. During the same period, the 15-year mortgage rate dropped to 5.35 percent from 5.54 percent. Meanwhile, interest on five-year adjustable mortgages slipped to 5.67 percent from 5.87 percent; and the one-year ARM slid to 5.03 percent from 5.21 percent. Source: San Diego Union-Tribune (09/19/08)

Increasingly, sellers seeking short sales are encountering a new twist. Lenders are agreeing to let some short sales go through, but they want the home owners to sign a note promising to pay some or all of the balance due – debts that could burden borrowers for the rest of their lives. Moody’s Economy.com estimates that about 10 million home owners have negative equity, a condition known colloquially as being upside down or underwater. By next June, the forecasting company expects the total to rise to 12.7 million — a quarter of all home owners who have mortgages. “The first wave of foreclosures involved a lot of investors who