Filtered by category: Industry Clear Filter

Mortgage Rates at 20-year High, Fueling Concerns about Affordability: Freddie Mac

Originally published on October 13, 2022, by Angela Waugaman for Freddie Mac.

Freddie Mac (OTCQB: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 6.92 percent.

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Mortgage Rates Take Slight Dip but Remain High, Freddie Mac Reported

Originally published on Ocotber 6, 2022, by Angela Waugaman for Freddie Mac.

Mortgage rates fell slightly during the past week due to ongoing economic uncertainty, Freddie Mac reported Oct. 6 in its Primary Mortgage Market Survey. Rates remain higher than they were a year ago, which is making housing more expensive for potential homebuyers.

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Single-tenant Cap Rates Up in Q3: The Boulder Group

Cap rates in the single-tenant net lease sector were up slightly in all sectors during the third quarter, the first time in two years with consecutive quarterly increases, The Boulder Group reported on Oct. 6 in its Q3 2022 Net Lease Market report. Retail reached 5.86%, office hit 6.8% and industrial came in at 6.61%.

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Appraisal Institute Releases Podcast on Lender Work, Shares Advice and Tips

The Appraisal Institute on Sept. 23 released its latest episode of the Face Value podcast, “Lender Work for Appraisers: Facts, Myths and Opportunities.” Host Warren Boizot, SRA, AI-RRS, is joined by Michelle Rogers, SRA, and Ken Dicks, MAI, for a conversation on ways in which appraisers and lenders can successfully work together. They share their personal experiences in this area and offer advice and tips from the field.

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Commercial and Multifamily Lending Drops, but Rebound Expected in 2023: MBA  

Originally published on October 5, 2022, by Mortgage Bankers Association.

The Mortgage Bankers Association, in an updated baseline forecast, said total commercial and multifamily mortgage borrowing and lending is expected to fall to $766 billion this year, down 14 percent from 2021 totals ($891 billion).

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Pending Home Sales Drop 2% Nationwide, NAR Data Shows

Originally published on September 28, 2022, by the National Association of Realtors.

Pending home sales sagged for the third straight month in August, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. Three out of four major regions experienced month-over-month decreases in transactions, however, the West saw a modest gain. Year-over-year, all four regions posted double-digit declines.

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Remote Work Largely Responsible for Home Price Surge: Fed

Originally published on September 26, 2022, by Catarina Saraiva for Bloomberg.

The shift to working from home drove more than half of the increase in house and rent prices during the pandemic and will likely drive up costs and inflation going forward as the shift becomes permanent, according to research from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. 

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Sun Belt Cities Lead Nation in Canceled Home Purchase Agreements, Redfin Reports

Originally published on September 26, 2022, by Angela Cherry for Redfin.

Nationwide, roughly 64,000 home-purchase agreements fell through in August, equal to 15.2% of homes that went under contract that month. That’s up from 12.1% a year earlier and is comparable with July’s revised rate of 15.5%, according to a new report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage.

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Institutional Investors Lower Expectations on Real Estate Holdings, Survey Shows

Originally published on September 19, 2022, by Michael Tucker for the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Institutional investors are lowering their real estate return expectations, the Pension Real Estate Association reported.

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Fannie Mae Data Shows Modest Recession Likely in 2023

Originally published on September 21, 2022 by Matthew Classick for Fannie Mae.

Economic growth is projected to resume in the second half of 2022, but the combination of high inflation, monetary policy tightening, and a slowing housing market is likely to tip the economy into a modest recession in the new year, according to the September 2022 commentary from the Fannie Mae (FNMA/OTCQB) Economic and Strategic Research (ESR) Group. The ESR Group continues to forecast 0.0 percent real GDP growth on a full-year basis through 2022, but it revised downward its expectations for full-year 2023 growth by one-tenth of a percentage point to negative 0.5 percent. Core inflation remains considerably higher than the Federal Reserve’s stated target; as such, the ESR Group maintained its expectation that the Federal Open Market Committee will raise the federal funds rate by 75 basis points at its September meeting. The ESR Group’s baseline forecast anticipates the federal funds rate topping out at a range of 3.50 to 3.75 percent in early 2023, though it sees significant upside risk to the eventual terminal rate.

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CFPB Seeks Public Input on New Refinance Mortgage Products

Originally published on September 22, 2022, by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is asking for public input on ways to spur new mortgage products that help households. The CFPB seeks insights on ways to improve mortgage refinances for homeowners who would benefit from refinancing, especially for borrowers with smaller loan balances. The agency also seeks public input on ways to support automatic short-term and long-term loss mitigation assistance for homeowners who experience financial disruptions. The CFPB will use this information as it considers steps to support household financial stability and address refinance market gaps. Today’s initiative is part of a broader CFPB effort to promote competition and innovation in consumer finance markets.

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Lot Prices for Single-family Homes at Record High: NAHB

Originally published on September 13, 2022 by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).

Lot values for single-family detached housing starts in 2021 increased across the nation, with the national value and six out of nine Census division values setting new records. The U.S. median lot price now stands at $55,000, according to NAHB’s analysis of the Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction (SOC) data.

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Amazon Announces Plans to Fund Affordable Housing in and Around Washington, DC

Originally published on September 14, 2022, by the Government of the District of Columbia, Mayor Muriel Bowser.

Today, Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) announced a commitment of $147 million to create and preserve 1,260 affordable housing units in six of Washington, D.C.’s eight wards and in nearby Maryland and Virginia communities—primarily in partnership with minority-led organizations.

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Mortgage Rates Climb Above 6% for First Time Since 2008, According to Freddie Mac

Originally published on September 15, 2022, by Freddie Mac.

Freddie Mac (OTCQB: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 6.02 percent.

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Amazon Closes Some US Warehouses, Scraps Plans for Dozens of Others: Report

Originally published on September 2, 2022, by Matt Day and Spencer Soper for Bloomberg.

Amazon.com Inc., determined to reduce the size of its sprawling delivery operation amid slowing sales growth, has abandoned dozens of existing and planned facilities around the US, according to a closely watched consulting firm. 

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Office Market Likely Changed Forever: MBA White Paper

Originally published on September 9, 2022, by the Mortgage Banker's Association. 

The ongoing tug of war between employers and employees about returning to the office will accelerate as pandemic-related impacts fade, according to a new Mortgage Bankers Association white paper.

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Foreclosure Rates Rise to Pre-pandemic Levels, Data Shows

Originally published on September 8, 2022 by ATTOM Staff for ATTOM.

 ATTOM, a leading curator of real estate data nationwide for land and property data, today released its August 2022 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, which shows there were a total of 34,501 U.S. properties with foreclosure filings — default notices, scheduled auctions, or bank repossessions — up 14 percent from a month ago and up 118 percent from a year ago.

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RV/Boat Storage Facilities in Demand Following Record Pandemic Purchases: Data 

Originally published on September 7, 2022, by Yardi Matrix.

Consumer purchases of recreational vehicles and boats are spurring strong demand for storage facilities, creating investment opportunities within this niche asset class, according to a new research bulletin from Yardi® Matrix.

The bulletin outlines factors driving demand for RV and boat storage. Most notable among them are a record number of acquisitions. In 2021, 571,000 RV registrations and 313,000 boat sales were recorded, driven largely by consumers’ desire for outdoor vacation activities during the pandemic and a shortage of space in residential areas to store vehicles.

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Construction Costs to See Largest Gain in 15 Years: CBRE

Originally published on August 30, 2022 by Michael Tucker for the Mortgage Banker's Association.

CBRE, Dallas, said it expects U.S. construction costs to jump 14.1 percent year-over-year by year-end due to pressures including labor shortages, inflation, supply chain disruptions, pandemic reverberations, and the war in Ukraine.

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Office Sector Down, Not Out as Firms Seek Changes, Short Leases: Cushman & Wakefield

Originally published on August 30, 2022, by Michael Tucker for the Mortgage Banker's Association.

Office absorption remains negative even though office-using employment increased by 1.9% in the first half of the year, adding 635,000 jobs, reported Cushman & Wakefield, Chicago.

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