No Bull Agent

Living in San Diego’s Gaslamp District – Pro’s & Con’s (Video)

Tags: condos, Downtown, gaslamp district, ken kaplan, real estate, san diego

Fed dicusses “non-conventional means” to spur economy

Information in this post is provided by Greg Wickstrand, Home Loan Consultant for HomeServices Lending.  He is a guest blogger who provides us information from a lender’s perspective.  For additional posts by Greg, please visit his BLOG.

What’s Ahead for Mortgage Rates this Week:  October 18, 2010
By:  Greg Wickstrand

Mortgage markets worsened last week in back-and-forth trading, pushing conforming mortgage rates higher on the week.

Despite the uptick, however, Freddie Mac reports that rates still managed to make new, all-time lows for the third week in a row. The benchmark 30-year fixed rate mortgage is now down 1.02% since April 2010.

The United States is experiencing a Refi Boom.

As compared to 6 months ago, a new, $200,000 home loan costs $124 less per month in principal + interest.

This week, monthly payments may fall some more. It all depends on data.

Early in the week, housing data takes center stage. The National Association of Home Builders releases its Housing Market Index this morning, and, Tuesday, the government prints September’s Housing Starts figures.  Both reports figure to influence the bond market. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: federal reserve, freddie mac, home buyer, housing market index, mortgage rate, san diego

Mortgage Market Update: September employment report coming at end of the week

Information in this post is provided by Ron McGowan, Senior Mortgage Consultant with PrimeLending.  He is a guest blogger who provides us information from a lender’s perspective.  For additional information on Ron, please visit his website at ILoanSanDiego.com.

Inside Lending Newsletter from Ron McGowan for the week of October 4, 2010

Market Update
INFO THAT HITS US WHERE WE LIVE  Last week’s housing market data centered on Standard & Poor’s S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index. This showed home prices UP in July for the fourth month in a row, but the pace of their gain had slowed from prior months. With the expiration of the government’s home buyer tax incentives, some observers wonder if the S&P/Case-Shiller will keep moving up. The composite 20-city index, a broad measure of U.S. home prices, showed a 3.2% increase year over year, the sixth month in a row it posted an annual gain.

Nonetheless, home price gains did slow in the waning days of the tax credits. In July, only 12 of the 20 cities surveyed showed price gains, compared to 17 cities reporting rising prices in June. Analysts pointed out that these results underscore the fact that the spring/early summer months are the best for home sales. Most experts feel the next few months should give us a better idea of the true strength of the housing market. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: california, kaplan office, mortgage market, pending home sales, san diego, september employment report