Blog – Page 443 of 891 – Mike Pfefferman

09

Mar

Financial Reports

What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week -March 9th, 2020

What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week -March 9th, 2020 Home mortgage rates slipped to their lowest rates on record as uncertainty over the coronavirus continued to impact financial markets. Freddie Mac reported lower average mortgage rates for fixed and adjustable-rate mortgages.

Rates for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell by 16 basis points to 3.29 percent; the average rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages was also 16 basis points lower at 2.79 percent.

Mortgage rates for 5/1 adjustable-rate mortgages were two points lower on average at 3.18 percent. Discount points averaged 0.70 percent for fixed-rate mortgages and 0.20 percent for 5/1 adjustable rate mortgages. The 10-Year Treasury Yield, which tracks with mortgage rates, slipped to 0.90 percent last week; this was the first time the yield rate fell below one percent.

Homeowners rushed to take advantage of low mortgage rates through refinancing, but homebuyers could not gain the same benefits from record-low mortgage rates due to persistent shortages of available and affordable homes for sale. Analysts advised against waiting to refinance as home mortgage rates aren’t expected to fall much lower.

Construction Spending Rises, Fed Cuts Key Rate as National Unemployment Rate Falls

Analysts have long relied on home builders to ease chronically short supplies of homes for sale. Construction spending rose to 1.80 percent in January as compared to December’s rate of 0.20 percent. Analysts expected January’s construction spending to rise to 0.90 percent.

The Federal Reserve cut its target federal funds rate range by 0.50 percent to 1.00-1.25 percent.in a move to relieve the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on the economy. The Fed may cut its key rate by an additional 0.25 percent when the central bank’s Federal Open Market Committee holds its scheduled meeting on March 17-18^th.

Labor-sector reports showed mixed results for job growth. The government’s Non-Farm Payrolls report showed 273,000 public and private-sector jobs added in February, this pace was unchanged from January. ADP reported 183,000 jobs added in February as compared to 209,000 jobs added in January.

First-time unemployment claims fell to216,000 claims filed from the prior week’s reading of 219,000 new claims filed. Analysts expected 217,000 new claims filed. The national unemployment rate dropped to 3.50 percent in February as compared to January’s reading of 3.60 percent.

What’s Ahead

This week’s scheduled economic news includes readings on inflation and consumer sentiment. Weekly readings on mortgage rates and new jobless claims will also be released.

06

Mar

By First Rate Financial Group

Real Estate

Coping With Relationships During The Moving Process

Coping With Relationships During The Moving Process Heading to a new place can be an exciting time; however, this is going to have an impact on someone’s relationships with family members and friends. The idea of relocation can be stressful for these emotional attachments. This can cause some hesitation as individuals and families adjust to living in a new place.

These are a few tips that everyone should keep in mind.

Keep In Touch

Of course, one of the most important tips for coping with the move is to keep in touch. This doesn’t mean that these relationships need to die. Simply arrange ways to talk with each other.

This starts with phone calls, video chats, and emails. This is a great way to stay involved in the lives of close friends and family members. Once the move has settled, invite them out to take a look at the new place. It is exciting to move to a new city and this is an opportunity to share some hospitality with loved ones.

Memories Of Loved Ones Are Important

Be sure to take souvenirs, mementos, and reminders of the old home. Pictures are the easiest way to do this. Be sure to display these photos in conspicuous places in the new home. This will ensure that these relationships aren’t forgotten.

In addition to pictures, paperweights, trinkets, postcards, and other items make great mementos and can serve as decorations in the new home. Display these on a shelf or ledge where they can be seen. This will help someone adjust to living in a new place.

Explore The New City

It is important to move forward. In order for someone to truly be happy in a new place, they need to give this location a chance. Get out of the house and explore everything the new city has to offer. Check out the bars, shops, restaurants, community spaces, and people. This is extremely important. Try to make new friends and create a solid support structure in a new place.

While it is important to maintain old relationships with family members and friends, they will want you to be happy in your new home as well. Therefore, branch out and explore. This will make coping with the move easier.

If you are in the market for a new home or interested in refinancing your current property, be sure to contact your trusted home mortgage professional.

05

Mar

By First Rate Financial Group

Mortgage

Most Renters Are Paying Far More Than Their Landlord’s Mortgage

Most Renters Are Paying Far More Than Their Landlord's Mortgage In the overwhelming majority of the 50 largest cities across the U.S., monthly rent is more than the mortgage payment for single-family homes. In several cases, much more.

Global answering service and chat support company Moneypenny compiled data from Zillow on median rent and mortgage payments from July 2014-July 2019.

In order to calculate the monthly mortgage payments, Moneypenny took the median home sale prices during the same time period and in the same major cities and then used nationally-average mortgage terms: 30-year fixed rate at 4% with approximately 6% down.

Once the two figures — median monthly rent and median monthly mortgage — were calculated for each city, they were compared side-by-side. The data may surprise you.

From Less Than Half To More Than Triple

In just seven of the 50 cities analyzed, tenants pay less rent than the owner’s mortgage payment each month. In 28 of the cities — well over half, tenants are paying more than 150% of their home’s mortgage. The city with the highest rent-to-mortgage ratio, Miami, shows that renters pay more than 300% of their landlord’s monthly mortgage payment on average.

Rounding out the top five are New York (276%); Riverside, California (231%); Boston (230%); and San Diego (221%). At the opposite end of the spectrum is New Orleans, where tenants pay just 49% of their home’s mortgage each month, followed by Richmond, Virginia (57%), and Kansas City, Missouri (82%).

An interesting data point is that the median monthly mortgage payment in Miami is $720, while in New Orleans it’s $2,857.

Not-Necessarily-For-Profit

While it makes perfect sense that rent prices in hot real estate markets are higher, some may still be surprised by the disparity between rental amounts and monthly mortgage payments. However, it’s important to note that even in the cities with the biggest gap, landlords are not necessarily pocketing the excess and enjoying a nice profit. While it’s certainly possible that they may be, homeowners are more likely putting some of that money back into the house in the form of improvements and maintenance, as well as setting some of it aside for large emergency repairs.

If you are in the market for a new home or interested in refinancing your current property, be sure to contact your trusted home mortgage professional to discuss financing options.