December 27, 2010 (Chris Moore) Every year at Christmas there’s always that one “hard to get” item that always seems to be impossible to find. This year proved to be no different. But instead of a doll, or a toy, or the latest electronic gadget, it was a loan modification. Read more...
December 24 2010 (Chris Moore) In a letter addressed to the Obama Administrations top financial leaders, fifty-two of the mortgage industry’s top executives are calling for the development of national standards in the originating, selling and servicing of mortgage loans. Read more...
December 24, 2010 (Jeff Alan) Standard & Poor's/Experian Consumer Credit Default report for December, released on Tuesday, showed a rise in monthly default rates for first and second mortgages to 3.05% and 1.80% in November 2010. It was the first time since December 2009 that the index has risen, although the year-over-year decline is 38.84 [...]
December 24 2010 (Brian Moore) The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Census Bureau reported that sales of new homes increased by 5 percent in November 2010 compared to October. New home sales rose to an annualized rate of 290,000 units from 275,000 units in October. Read more...
December 23 2010 (Chris Moore) Freddie Mac today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), which found that both fixed-rate mortgage rates eased slightly this week. The 5-year hybrid ARM dropped back slightly, but the 1-year ARM rates were up. Read more...
December 23, 2010 (Shirley Allen) Beginning October 1st, 2011, mortgage banks and lenders must notify mortgage applicants of the risk of possible payment increases on any adjustable rate mortgage loan before they agree to the terms of the loan. Read more...
December 23 2010 (Shirley Allen) Starting January 1st, 2011, lenders will be required to disclose to mortgage applicants how their credit score might affect their mortgage rate and the terms of their loan before the applicants finally commit to accept mortgage offers. The hope is that the disclosure will motivate consumers who have negative information [...]
December 22 2010 (Chris Moore) The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending December 17, 2010. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 18.6 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from last week. Read more...
December 21 2010 (Shirley Allen) Pennsylvania is providing $772.5 million in property tax relief this year, including expanded rebates for eligible elderly and handicapped residents from the state's Property Tax/Rent Rebate program, but those programs are due to expire at the end of the year. Read more...
