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MarketWatch reported July 25, 2007 that U.S. mortgage applications dropped 3.6 percent compared to the previous week.
Refinancing applications dropped a seasonally adjusted 1.4 percent and purchase applications decreased by 5 percent, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported.
The MBA's weekly survey covers about 50 percent of the nation's retail residential mortgage originations.
The National Association of REALTORS (NAR) reported July 25, 2007 that total existing home sales in the U.S., including single-family, condominium, townhouse and co-op homes, fell 3.8 percent compared to May 2007 and dropped 11.4 percent compared to June 2006.
Total housing inventory fell 4.2 percent at the end of June 2007 to 4.20 million existing homes available for sale, which represents an 8.8-month supply at the current sales pace, the same as a downwardly revised 8.8-month supply in May.
The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $230,100 in June, up 0.3 percent from June 2006 when the median was $229,300. The median is a typical market price where half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less.
Single-family home sales fell 3.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.01 million in June (from a downwardly revised 5.19 million in May) and are 12.1 percent below the 5.70 million-unit level in June 2006. The median existing single-family home price was $230,300 in June, up 0.1 percent from June 2006.
Existing condominium and co-op sales dropped 6.3 percent to a
seasonally adjusted annual rate of 740,000 units in June from 790,000
in May, and are 6.6 percent lower than the 792,000-unit pace in June 2006. The median existing condo price was $228,900 in June, up 2.6
percent from the previous year.
NAR President Pat V. Combs believes local market conditions vary widely. “Consumers should avoid making decisions based on what they hear about the national market because all real estate is local,” she said.
Existing-home sales in the Northeast fell 7.3 percent to a level of 1.01 million in June, and are 7.3 percent lower than June 2006. The median existing-home price in the Northeast was $294,400, up 1.8 percent from a year ago.
The Massachusetts Association of REALTORS® (MAR) reported on its Web site July 23, 2007 that the number of single-family homes and condominiums sold in the first six months of the year in Massachusetts were down 1.4 percent compared to Q1 and Q2 in 2006.
Sales of single-family homes in June 2007 declined 6 percent compared to June 2006, and condominiums sales decreased 3.6 percent over the same period, the MAR reported.
The median sales price of a single-family home across the state dropped 1.6 percent in June 2007 compared to June 2006. Compared to May 2007, median selling prices were up 2.5 percent for single-family homes. The median price of condos rose 4.4 percent in the same period.
The inventory of residential properties (detached single-family homes and condos) on the market as of June 30, 2007 decreased 16.6 percent compared to the same time last year (from 65,325 listings in 2006 to 54,497 listings in 2007). At the current sales pace, this represents approximately 7.5 months of supply, a decrease from 8.5 months of supply in June 2006.
The Warren Group, a publisher of real estate data, reported July 23, 2007 that its research indicated a 4.3 percent drop in single-family sales during the first six months of the year compared to the same period in 2006. That's 2.9 percent more than the MAR reported.
The price for single-family homes was 334,000, down 4.6 percent from $350,000 in June 2006, The Warren Group reported. The year-to-date median price for single-family homes fell 3.6 percent from $330,000 last year to $318,000.
Condominium sales experienced the worst drop in sales all year in June, with sales falling 12.3 percent from 3,566 in June 2006 to 3,128. The Warren Group reported that the median sale price in June fell 4.1 percent from $292,000 last year to $280,000. The year-to-date price was down 3.6 percent from $280,000 to $270,000.
Using sales data from the MLS Property Information Network, Inc, I performed some single-family market research for some buyers looking at single-family homes in Westford, Massachusetts.
Days on the Market for Single-family Homes in Westford, MA:
Number of Sales for Single-family Homes in Westford, MA:
Median Price for a Single-family Home in Westford, MA:
During the first six months of the year, the median price for a single-family home in Wilmington, Massachusetts has declined 9 percent compared to the same period in 2006, according to data I researched using the MLS Property Information Network, Inc.
Median Sales Price for Single-family Home in Wilmington, MA:
Average Days on the Market for Single-family Homes in Wilmington, MA:
Sales of single-family homes have increased in Wilmington (obviously due to the decline in prices), but clearly the data above indicates that the pressure still is on sellers to lower prices for a quick sale.
Forbes magazine ranked Boston as the sixth best city for young professionals.
New York City (this should not be a surprise to anyone) ranked No. 1 as the city where young professionals had the best chance to reach the corner office. New York is home to many of America's biggest and best companies, not to mention a night life second to no place on Earth.
San Francisco ranked 2, ahead of Atlanta, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Boston, Seattle, Minneapolis, Philadelphia and Denver respectively.
Forbes compiled the list by tracking where the graduates of top universities across the country ended up 10 years after commencement; where the best business opportunities exist; which cities had the most young and unmarried people; and which cities paid young professionals the best.
Alumni that remained close to school were excluded from the data. But for this exclusion, Boston would have ranked higher.
"The bottom 10 cities were brought down by a variety of causes. Salary to cost of living submarined Miami, Norfolk, Va., and San Antonio. The inability to attract top grads and top companies hurt Detroit and Las Vegas, and all our measurements converged on Tampa, Fla., beating it down to last place on our list."
U.S. home construction rose 2.3 percent in June, but the number of pulled building permits, an indicator of future construction, fell 7.5 percent, Fox News reported July 18, 2007.
Permit activity dropped to its lowest level in 10 years, signaling more weakness in home construction across the U.S.
Read This Article
Governor Deval Patrick's administration introduced a $250 million fund to be used to help delinquent borrowers of subprime mortgages refinance into more affordable loans to prevent them from losing their homes to foreclosure, The Boston Globe reported July 11, 2007.
"Massachusetts Secretary of State William F. Galvin said the program was 'a step in the right direction, but it wasn't going to solve any major problems' because it can't help all the borrowers now in trouble -- those already in foreclosure. He's proposed legislation to require lenders to obtain court approval before they can foreclose on, and seize, a property."
The program does have income limits and "borrowers who used subprime mortgages as a refinancing tool to cash out
equity from their homes would not be eligible for the assistance."
MassHousing will be providing the refinancing loans.
The subprime debacle is more than a bit uncomfortable for Gov. Patrick, who had his share of bad press earlier this year for his involvement with subprime lenders.
An index that tracks new home sales across the United States dropped to it lowest point since 1991, the Boston Herald reported July 17, 2007.
"The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo housing market index, which tracks builders’ perceptions of current market conditions and expectations for home sales over the next six months, fell to 24 this month, the lowest reading since January 1991, the NAHB said."
Economists expected the index to stand at 27. Index ratings higher than 50 indicate positive market sentiment. The seasonally adjusted index has been below 50 since May 2006.
The index, based on a survey of residential developers nationwide, has declined five straight months.
MarketWatch reported July 19, 2007 that average rates for U.S. 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage loans remained at 6.73 percent, the same as the previous week and near a yearly high.
The average rate for the 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage stood at 6.80 percent a year ago.
"The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.38% for the week ... down just slightly from last week's 6.39%. The mortgage averaged 6.41% a year ago."
The Associated Press reported July 18, 2007 that U.S. mortgage applications rose 0.9 percent compared to the previous week.
The Mortgage Bankers Association, which conducts a weekly survey of lenders, said both home loan and refinance loan applications rose.
"The index has fluctuated this year after sinking to its lowest level since 2002 last summer."
A California lender, under pressure from state officials, agreed to postpone 2,200 Massachusetts foreclosures for 90 days, The Boston Globe reported July 12, 2007.
Obviously, this is a blessing from above for more than 2,000 homeowners.
"Attorney General Martha Coakley secured the 90-day foreclosure moratorium from Fremont [Loan & Investment], once the state's second-largest issuer of subprime loans, after she threatened in May to sue the California company over lending practices she alleged violated the state's consumer-protection laws, such as making mortgages without fully disclosing the terms."
According The Globe, Fremont provided loans to individuals clearly not in a position to repay.
"One such borrower was Patricia Sujballi, who in May 2006 purchased a two-family home in Dorchester. Fremont gave her a subprime mortgage for $529,000, even though she had just moved out of a homeless shelter, was unemployed, and her husband earned around $32,000 a year.
"Sujballi said she and her husband tried to get out of the Fremont loan at the closing when they realized they could not afford the $4,700 monthly payment, but said they were pressured by the bank's attorneys to sign it.
"Sujballi's home was foreclosed on June 15, and on Tuesday, the mother of two received a 72-hour notice to move out. Sujballi said she faces being homeless again. Coakley's action against Fremont, she said, 'is too late for me.'"
Sujballi's mortgage broker apparently made more than $9,500 on the deal.
The Boston Globe real estate section recently profiled Saugus, MA and Rockport, MA.
Nine miles from Boston, Saugus was just shy of 27,000 residents in 2005 and currently has a median home price of $316,000. Its property tax rate is $8.28.
Read more about Saugus, Massachusetts.
Rockport, a seaside community, is 37 miles from Boston. It had 7,763 residents in 2005, and its tax rate is $8.05. Settled by Europeans in 1690, the small town now has a median home price of $400,000.
With all the recent foreclosures blamed on subprime lending (loans to those individuals with less than good credit), a solid credit score is increasingly necessary to not only get a home loan, but to get a lower interest rate.
Some mortgage brokers are using tighter lending standards and lower credit scores as an excuse to put borrowers in higher-rate mortgages. In some cases it is justified, but not all cases. Recently rising mortgage interest rates makes it even more important to shop around for the best rate and terms.
USA Today reported on July 2, 2007 about this topic.
"In response to a sharp rise in foreclosures, mortgage lenders have tightened their standards, leading to an increase in rejected applications."
You can obtain your credit report, not your score, for free at http://www.annualcreditreport.com. You'll have to purchase your credit score, usually between $5 and $10.
"In addition, interest rates have been rising in recent weeks, so even if you qualify for a mortgage, you'll probably pay more for it. That means it's more important than ever to make sure your credit score is in good shape."
The Telegraph, a Nashua, NH newspaper, reported July 12, 2007 that average rates for U.S. mortgage loans to 6.73 percent compared to 6.63 percent the previous week.
The 6.73 percent rate is the second highest this year. Average rates reached 6.74 percent about a month ago.
"The increase this week reflected a series of reports showing strong economic growth including a solid employment report in which the jobless rate held steady at 4.5 percent in June."
I am a Massachusetts real estate broker and lawyer and co-founder/owner of Buyers Brokers Only, LLC. I am also a partner in the law firm of Rosa & Kres, LLP.
If you have a question for me about any aspect of the home-buying process (i.e., house hunting, mortgages, negotiations, buyer agency, purchase and sale, etc.), please don't hesitate to send me an email. I'm happy to try to answer your question.
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