Posted by Jeff on March 18, 2010 under Mortgage Info | 
Federal Reserve policymakers pledged to keep rates low for an “extended period”. This reiterates the phrase they’ve used for the past year. The Federal Reserve also said it would end, on schedule, its program of buying mortgage-backed bonds to help keep home loan rates low.
The big question is will the end of the Fed MBS buy back policy drive mortgage rates up due to the lower demand for the security. As the normal secondary market for mortgage bonds is virtually non existent, it remains to be seen what will happen to mortgage rates.
Posted by Jeff on March 17, 2010 under Real Estate |
U.S. housing starts fell about 5.9% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 575,000 in February as several massive snowstorms hit the East and South. New construction was down in the Northeast and South, but up in the Midwest and West.
Starts of single-family homes fell 0.6% to a 499,000 pace, while starts of large condos and apartment building plunged 43%. In the past year, starts of single-family homes are up 39%, while starts of multifamily units are down 41%. Building permits dropped 1.6% to 612,000 in February. Permits for single-family homes fell 0.2% to a 503,000 rate.
So is this good news or bad? Bad news for builders but good news for the housing market. There are way too many homes for sale and this housing market will not recover until we work off the existing supply. So why do we need more inventory?
