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Average mortgage rates rise modestly

11/28/2013

WASHINGTON – Average U.S. mortgage rates rose modestly this week, a move that makes home-buying a bit less affordable. Still, rates remain near historically low levels.

Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Wednesday that the average rate on the 30-year loan increased to 4.29 percent from 4.22 percent last week. The average on the 15-year fixed ticked up to 3.3 percent from 3.27 percent.

Rates have risen nearly a full percentage point since May after the Federal Reserve signaled it might slow its bond purchases by the end of the year. Rates peaked at nearly 4.6 percent in August. But the Fed held off in September and most analysts expect it won’t move until next year.

The increase in mortgage rates has contributed to a slowdown in home sales over the past two months.

To calculate average mortgage rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country at the beginning of each week. The average doesn’t include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

The average fee for a 30-year mortgage was unchanged at 0.7 point. The fee for a 15-year loan also was unchanged at 0.7 point.

The average rate on a one-year adjustable-rate mortgage edged down to 2.60 percent, from 2.61 percent last week. The fee was unchanged at 0.4 point.

The average rate on a five-year adjustable mortgage edged down to 2.94 percent this week, from 2.95 percent last week. The fee was unchanged at 0.5 point.

Source: http://www.buffalonews.com/business/average-mortgage-rates-rise-modestly-20131127

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Mortgage Rate Analysis And Predictions : How Will U.S. Mortgage Rates Move This Week?

11/26/2013

Mortgage markets worsened last week, moving U.S. mortgage rates higher on the whole.

Like prior weeks, market action was sharp. Rates climbed 0.25 percentage points Wednesday afternoon, which shocked thousands of unprepared mortgage rate shoppers. Markets made small improvements over the remainder of the week, but couldn't undo the damage.

Mortgage rates have been volatile since last quarter. So, what can buyers and refinancing households expect to see this week. What will mortgage rates do next?

Freddie Mac : 30-Year Fixed Rate At 4.22%

According to government-backed Freddie Mac, last week, the average 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate slipped 13 basis points to 4.22% nationwide; with the rate available to prime borrowers willing to pay 0.7 discount points at closing.

0.7 discount points carries a cost equal to 0.7% of your loan size.

A borrower in Boston, Massachusetts, therefore, whose loan size is equal to the local Freddie Mac mortgage loan limit of $417,000 would pay $2,919 at closing in order to lock a 4.22% mortgage rate. A borrower in Orange County, California with a loan size at the local limit of $625,500 would pay $4,379.

Borrowers opting out of discount points will pay slightly higher rates.

Freddie Mac reported rates for 15-year fixed rate mortgages lower, too. The group's survey of more than 100 mortgage lenders showed the average 15-year fixed rate mortgage rate down eight basis points to 3.27% nationwide.

Like its 30-year counterpart, the 15-year rate requires 0.7 points to be paid at closing.

There is now a 0.95 percentage point difference between the published rates of a 30-year and 15-year fixed rate mortgage -- among the largest spreads in recorded mortgage history. Borrowers using a 15-year mortgage now pay close to 70% less to own their own home than via a 30-year loan.

Read more: http://themortgagereports.com/14022/mortgage-rate-analysis-and-prediction-how-will-u-s-mortgage-rates-move-this-week
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Mortgages could go ‘green’ with energy-rewards lending

11/25/2013

WASHINGTON — For the growing numbers of home purchasers who care about energy efficiency, it’s the ultimate “green” goal: Lenders should recognize the net savings that energy improvements provide to property owners and take them into account when they underwrite and set the fees for mortgages.

Appraisers should also recognize the added value.

The rationale: Owners of homes that reduce energy use pay lower utility bills than owners of energy guzzlers, so why not factor these out-of-pocket savings into household debt-to-income ratios and appraised valuations?

This might permit larger mortgage amounts for energy-efficient homes and help qualify more first-time buyers for loans.

Bipartisan legislation is pending in the Senate — the Sensible Accounting to Value Energy (SAVE) Act — that would require Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the Federal Housing Administration and other federal mortgage players to revise their rules to better recognize and reward energy savings.

More than 125 local Realtor multiple-listing services across the country are helping out by including so-called “green fields” in their online listing information.

The green fields allow sellers, buyers, realty agents and appraisers to describe energy improvements or special certifications that a property offers, such as Energy Star appliances.

Thousands of appraisers are undergoing “green valuation” training, and the country’s largest association in that field, the Appraisal Institute, has created a comprehensive “green addendum” that can be used to translate energy-conservation improvements into higher property valuations.

But there’s just been another milestone on the way to seeing green in real estate: A major American private mortgage-insurance company plans to jump into green lending and is gearing up to offer a version of what it already provides to buyers in Canada — cost savings to energy conservers.

Adam Johnston, chief appraiser for Genworth Mortgage Insurance, says his company is determined to incorporate energy savings and green valuations into its underwriting.

This is becoming more feasible, he said, because of advances such as the green appraisal addendum, more accurate MLS listing data, and growing acceptance of energy-efficiency standards for homes.

In Canada, Genworth offers buyers a 10 percent “energy-efficient refund” of their mortgage insurance premiums, a break on debt-to-income ratio calculations in underwriting, and online access to discounts on a wide variety of commonly purchased household items.

Here’s an example. On a $300,000 mortgage with a 5 percent down payment, the insurance premium comes to $8,250. You pay that if you’re buying a house that doesn’t qualify on energy-conservation standards.

But if the home you’re buying meets national or provincial energy-efficiency guidelines, you may qualify for an $825 refund and have your monthly savings on heating factored into your debt-service ratios.

Your lender might also approve you for a larger mortgage amount if you need it.

To get the benefits on an existing property, the house must be certified as either 20 percent more efficient than Canada’s Model National Energy Code for Buildings, or 5 percent more efficient than any applicable provincial standards, whichever is greater.

In an interview, Johnston said that while there’s no specific starting date yet for Genworth to begin offering mortgage-insurance breaks on green-certified homes, it’s coming.

By necessity, insurers such as Genworth are highly sensitive to a variety of borrower risk factors, and now they have statistical evidence that people who buy homes with significant energy-saving components present lower risks for lenders and insurers.

A national study tracking payments on 71,000 home loans found that mortgages on energy-efficient properties are 32 percent less likely to default.

Funded by the Institute for Market Transformation and conducted by researchers at the University of North Carolina, the study controlled for other factors that might explain payment performance, including income, home values, credit scores and local utility costs.

Other, subtler factors could be at work — for example, are buyers who care about energy conservation and utility payments inherently more likely to care about keeping current on their mortgage? Who knows?

Bottom line: Though this country is years behind Canada in recognizing and valuing home-energy efficiency, there are now determined efforts under way in the appraisal, lending, building and realty brokerage industries — even in Congress — to catch up, sooner rather than later.

Source: http://seattletimes.com/html/businesstechnology/2022288284_bizharney24xml.html?prmid=4917

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New, tough rules for mortgages begin in Jan. 2014

11/19/2013

Average 30-year mortgage rate edges up to 4.16%

11/18/2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — Average U.S. rates on fixed mortgages rose slightly last week but remained near historically low levels.

Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac says the average rate on the 30-year loan increased to 4.16% from 4.10% last week, which was the lowest level in four months. The average on the 15-year fixed mortgage rose to 3.27% from 3.20%.

Rates have been falling since September when the Federal Reserve surprised investors by continuing to buy $85 billion a month in bonds. The purchases are intended to keep long-term interest rates low.

Slower hiring in recent months has many analysts predicting that the Fed will maintain the current pace of the bond purchases into early next year, which should keep mortgage rates low for the time being.

The recent drop in mortgage rates could help boost home sales, which slowed in September after rates reached their highest averages in two years.

The decline in sales has also affected price gains. Real estate data provider CoreLogic said Tuesday that a measure of U.S. home prices rose only slightly in September from August, a sign that prices are leveling off after big gains earlier this year.

To calculate average mortgage rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country on Monday through Wednesday each week. The average doesn't include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

The average fee for a 30-year mortgage rose to 0.8 point from 0.7 point. The fee for a 15-year loan was unchanged at 0.7 point.

The average rate on a one-year adjustable-rate mortgage fell to 2.61 percent from to 2.64 percent. The fee remained at 0.5 point.

The average rate on a five-year adjustable mortgage was steady at 2.96 percent. The fee edged up to 0.5 point from 0.4 point

Source: http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2013/11/07/mortgage-rates/3465703/

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Mortgage rates climb for second consecutive week

11/15/2013

Don’t take out a fixed-rate mortgage

11/13/2013

If you’re buying a home anytime soon, here’s some contrarian advice: Don’t take out a fixed-rate mortgage. If you do, you’re likely to pay more than you need to.

Instead, it often makes more sense to choose a floating-rate note, also known as an adjustable-rate mortgage. Even on a small mortgage, over time you’ll save thousands of dollars. If you use the extra cash to pay down the loan, you’ll save even more.

Such loans come in and out of fashion for a couple of reasons, says Frank Nothaft, chief economist at Freddie Mac. When rates on fixed loans are perceived to be low, borrowers tend to shun ARMs. When the difference between fixed and floating rates is small, again people tend to shun ARMs. Floating-rate notes are considered riskier than fixed-rate mortgages because the monthly payment can jump higher. A so-called one-year ARM typically will reset each year based on fluctuations in the interest rate on the one-year Treasury security or the interbank cost of borrowing known as Libor. Other common ARMs reset each year after an initial fixed period of three, five or seven years.

Fixed-rate mortgages do make sense for some people. For instance, if your budget is so tight that even a small increase in your monthly payment would break the bank, a fixed-rate mortgage makes sense. A fixed rate would also make sense if you will keep your new home for a long time, like 30 years.

More from WSJ: The Art of Protecting Fine Art

But for many people, ARMs come out ahead. Those people need to close their ears to the deafening sound of the ARM naysayers, like one financial planner I heard from: “You have got to be kidding. I guess a bad idea never dies. Don’t Americans ever learn?” I’ve withheld the name because I don’t want to embarrass him.

It’s true: Many people have been burned by ARMs. But as long as you are smart about it---more on that later---that financial adviser is wrong.

Costly Insurance

The main reason an adjustable rate will be cheaper is this: You almost certainly won’t be in your new house or apartment for the next 30 years, the typical life of a fixed-rate mortgage. Most people move every eight to 10 years, says Scott Buchta, head of fixed-income strategy at New York-based brokerage firm Brean Capital LLC. And even if you do stay longer than that, your mortgage won’t survive 30 years if you refinance at some point.

That’s important because the main reason the rate on a 30-year, fixed mortgage is higher than floating rates is that the lender assumes you will take the full 30 years to pay it back. That puts the lender at risk of losing money on the loan if borrowing costs go up during that term. So the lender charges you more.

For that higher interest rate, you get a form of insurance: the security of knowing what your payments will be for the life of the loan. You can sleep better at night, knowing that if interest rates shoot higher, it won’t hurt you. But if you close out the loan in, say, 10 years---by moving or refinancing---you’ve paid too much for that insurance, because you were paying as though you needed 30 years of it.

Here’s an example of how much that can cost you. If you took out a 30-year mortgage in January 2003 the average fixed rate was 5.92%, according to Freddie Mac. Ten years of interest and principal payments on a $200,000 mortgage would have cost you $142,660. But if you went with a one-year ARM, which kicked off at 3.99%, according to Freddie Mac, after resetting each year the total cost would have been $119,181. That’s a savings of $23,479.

Yes, the interest rate on the ARM jumped as high as 5.47% in that 10-year stretch---still lower than the rate you would have gotten if you had gone with a fixed mortgage---but it also fell as low as 2.76%. Rates for floating vs. fixed mortgages have followed a similar pattern since the widespread introduction of ARMs in the early 1980s.

The savings noted above could have been even higher. If you take the cash you save this way and put it toward paying down the principal, you’ll save two ways: You will shorten the life of the loan. And when the rate is reset each year, the new payment is based on the principal outstanding at that point, not on the amount you originally borrowed, so whatever rate you are charged will be applied to a smaller amount of debt.

But what if interest rates suddenly shoot higher? Should you be worried that the rate of, say, 2.75% you can get on a one-year ARM will suddenly jump into the double digits at some point because of an inflation-fueled spike in interest rates like the one the U.S. experienced in the years around 1980? No. Because ARMs come with rate caps. Typically, an ARM has a lifetime cap of five or six percentage points above the initial rate, and a two-point limit for each reset.

Being Smart About It

The biggest caveat: Don’t overreach. That’s how a lot of people have gotten into trouble.

“People shouldn’t use adjustables to stretch too far on a new purchase or refinancing,” says Larry Luxenberg, a financial adviser in New City, N.Y. The lower initial interest rate on an ARM might tempt you to borrow more than you could with a fixed-rate mortgage---to stretch, as Mr. Luxenberg puts it---but that can backfire if an upward adjustment in the interest rate busts your monthly budget. If you can’t handle an upward adjustment, you’ve borrowed too much.

There’s a simple way to guard against that kind of trouble. Work out how much your housing budget is (excluding taxes and insurance) and how much that allows you to borrow at current fixed rates. Then borrow no more than that amount.

Source: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/when-to-go-for-a-flexible-rate-mortgage-2013-11-13

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Rich people are getting mortgages cheaper than you

11/12/2013

Rich homebuyers can now get mortgages cheaper than pretty much everyone else.

In an unusual twist, lenders are offering rates on jumbo mortgages that are more than a quarter of a percentage point lower than those on the conforming loans backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The government-run agencies require conforming loans to be below $417,000, unless they are for homes in high-cost areas like New York or Los Angeles,where the limit is $625,500.

Jumbo loans exceed those dollar limits and, historically, banks charge higher rates on them -- about 0.25 percentage points more -- than they do for conforming loans, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. But over the past couple of months, the tables have turned.

This week, Wells Fargo (WFC, Fortune 500) advertised a 30-year jumbo mortgage at a rate of 4.125%, significantly lower than the 4.5% rate it is offering for a 30-year, fixed-rate conforming loan. US Bank (USB, Fortune 500) is offering a jumbo for 3.875% this week compared with 4.25% for a conforming loan. And Chase's (JPM, Fortune 500) jumbos have been running a quarter of a percentage point below conventional mortgages, as have TD Bank's (TD).

"Never in my memory have jumbos been such a bargain," said Peter Grabel, a loan officer at Luxury Mortgage Corp. in Stamford, Ct., with 13 years on the job.

One big reason jumbo rates are so low is because lenders want to attract wealthy clients and hang on to them, said Malcolm Hollensteiner, head of consumer lending for TD Bank. Once clients sign up for a mortgage, the bank can "cross sell them other products, like brokerage services," he said.

That works especially well in these days of strict underwriting standards, according to Keith Gumbinger, a mortgage expert with HSH.com.

"Borrowers have to open up their whole financial picture to lenders," he said. "They can see where there's value, which they might be able to sell against."

Once a wealthy client takes out one of these low-rate loans, they are likely to stick around. "With rates as low as they are, borrowers are never going to refinance the loans. Those affluent clients will stay on the bank's books forever," said Gumbinger.

Jumbo loans have also gotten comparatively cheaper. As the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), which regulates Fannie and Freddie, seeks to boost the two agencies' reserves against losses from mortgage defaults, it has raised fees and other costs for borrowers, according to Terry Francisco, a Bank of America spokesman.

Since Fannie and Freddie don't back jumbo mortgages, those fees don't apply and therefore aren't passed on to borrowers.

Read More: http://money.cnn.com/2013/11/12/real_estate/jumbo-mortgages/
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Five Questions to Decide Between a 15- and 30-Year Mortgage

11/8/2013

It has been a slow and painful process, but the housing market is now in recovery and foreclosures have been dropping. Since the housing bust, regulators have focused on preventing borrowers from entering into potentially toxic loans. To help accomplish this, the U.S. government established the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in 2010.

As part of this effort, the CFPB has proposed new disclosure forms to help borrowers understand the real risks and costs associated with their mortgage. But many potential borrowers are still unsure about the type of mortgage that is right for them. Many borrowers may be attracted to 15-year mortgages, which have a shorter term and lower interest rates than 30-year mortgages. But such a mortgage may not be right for their needs.

Despite the rise in popularity of the 15-year mortgage, it is not necessarily for everyone. For borrowers, it is important to get as much information about the different common mortgages institutions offer — and to understand the different terms. While the amount being borrowed, or principal of the loan, is often clear, the cost of the loan, or interest rate, is often less so.

In an interview with 24/7 Wall St., Guy Cecala, publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance, said borrowing to buy a home is a more complicated decision than refinancing. It is “much more of a calculation about what you can afford, how secure you are about your job, what’s the likelihood you’re going to want to move in less than five years.”

Borrowers must understand how payments, which consist of principal repayment and interest, will be structured under the different types of mortgages. They need to consider how much they will be paying for the loan, not just now, but in the future as well. And they should also consider their budget, age and other factors before deciding on a mortgage.

1. Can you afford to pay off the mortgage in 15 years?

Although a 15-year mortgage offers a lower rate relative to a 30-year mortgage, thereby allowing borrowers to pay interest for only half as long, a 15-year mortgage comes with a higher total monthly payment. This is because the principal must be paid off faster, making each principal payment larger.

Because borrowers pay down the principal balance faster, in the longer run they save on interest payments. Inside Mortgage Finance publisher Guy Cecala noted, “if you can afford the higher payments associated with the shorter-term 15-year mortgage, there is no reason not to take one.”

However, because the monthly payments are higher, it can strain borrowers’ ability to set aside money for retirement or their kids’ college tuition. These borrowers may be better-off with a 30-year mortgage. Similarly, if the higher payments of a 15-year mortgage mean borrowers have less money to invest elsewhere and diversify their portfolios, they may be better off with a 30-year mortgage.

2. Are you buying your first home?

First-time home buyers often benefit from selecting a 30-year mortgage because the monthly payments are lower. A longer-term mortgage can make a more expensive home more affordable for a new buyer. According to Cecala, most first-time home buyers “are trying to get in as much house as they can.”

Of course, 15-year and 30-year mortgages are not the only options available to consumers. Borrowers can take an adjustable-rate mortgage, which offers a low initial rate that stays unchanged for some period, such as five years. When the period expires, borrowers could pay more if interest rates rise. But for buyers who are not looking to own their home for too long and who are confident that they will be able to resell the home, an adjustable rate mortgage may be a sensible option.

3. Are you looking to refinance?

If you already have a mortgage and would like to refinance, now may be a good time. Cecala noted that if your current payments on a 30-year mortgage are high enough, you might be able to refinance into a 15-year mortgage and make similar monthly payments while shortening your mortgage term.

An additional factor that may make refinancing more attractive is the current difference, or spread, between interest rates on 15-year and 30-year mortgages. According to Cecala, “historically, the difference between the 30-year fixed rate and the 15-year fixed rate has been about 25 basis points,” or about 0.25%. Currently, the spread between the two rates is especially large, at close to 1% in some cases.

4. Are you planning on retiring soon?

How close a borrower is to retiring plays a major role in whether to take out a 15-year mortgage. Typically, borrowers who take 15-year mortgages are at least 40 years old, according to Cecala. These borrowers are often willing to pay off the balance on their mortgages faster in order to retire with little or no outstanding debt on their homes. However, many older homeowners also must weigh prepayment — making early payments on their mortgage — against the need to save for retirement. According to the CFPB, 30% of homeowners aged 70 and older have outstanding mortgages.

5. Do you have a strict savings plan?

Choosing a 15-year mortgage over a 30-year mortgage also may be a worthwhile choice if you are not a disciplined saver. But many people may lack the discipline needed to save long-term, Cecala noted, especially in amounts that would offset what they would save by switching to a 15-year mortgage. He also added that “a lot of times people need that extra money for something else,” and so they choose to keep their money in a 30-year mortgage with lower individual monthly payments.

Some truly disciplined savers may actually benefit from carrying their mortgages into retirement. According to a May story published by Time magazine: “if you expect to earn more after tax on your investments than you pay after tax on your mortgage, keep the mortgage.” What you want to avoid in retirement, however, is a situation where you are juggling a mortgage on top of your basic costs of living, taxes and health care payments.

Source: http://247wallst.com/special-report/2013/11/07/five-questions-to-decide-between-a-15-and-30-year-mortgage/2/

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Banks announce new loan structure for home buyers

11/6/2013

CHARLOTTE, N.C. --

Banks like Wells Fargo and Bank of America announced new loan structures that will allow a buyer to purchase a home with as little as 5 percent down.

The announcement came on the same day new housing numbers were released that showed the smallest gains in home prices since January; in Charlotte, house prices only rose 7.1 percent.

Experts say the combination of new loan structures and stabilizing home prices are good for buyers and sellers alike.

"We are still seeing price increases but not increasing so high as to take away that buyers' buying power," said home builder Bill Saint.

A former CPA, Saint builds custom homes and works with consumers on both sides of the buying and selling processes.

Saint said while the new loan terms will be attractive to buyers, they still must qualify under stringent restrictions that are far different than those before the housing market collapsed.

"The banks are doing the due diligence on that individual...if you've gone through the re-fi process or a new loan process, you realize it has to be a real loan," Saint said.

Experts predict the rise in housing prices will continue to decline when the October numbers are released.

Source: http://www.wsoctv.com/news/news/local/banks-announce-new-loan-structure-home-buyers/nbjB9/

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