An escrow account is a designated savings account into which funds get deposited for a specific purpose. With respect to real estate and home loans, escrow accounts are used to pay real estate tax bills and homeowners insurance payments. Escrow accounts are managed and disbursed by lenders. When a homeowner...

As reported by the National Association of REALTORS®, the number of Existing Home Sales dipped last month, ending the metric’s 5-month winning streak. Newspaper headlines today are overwhelmingly negative on housing. You’d almost believe this year’s housing recovery had ended. That’s hardly...

In what’s becoming a regular occurrence, housing data blew away economists expectations Tuesday. As reported by the National Association of Realtors®, the Pending Home Sales Index posted its 6th consecutive monthly gain in July. After a meteoric rise that started in January, the index is now at its...

ACTIVE (for sale) listings are down, SOLDS are up - that spells a correction in inventory level and a fairer supply vs. demand market. Most telling is this chart that shows our extreme buyers market in 2007 with 13 months of inventory on hand: AKA lots of homes to choose from. According to this chart...

Foreclosure-tracker RealtyTrac reports that the number of foreclosures nationwide rose 7 percent on a month-to-month basis last month. However, 3 states dominated the foreclosure list, tallying more foreclosures between them than the rest of the country combined. California : 30.0 percent Florida :...

The days of rock-bottom housing prices may be reaching an end. According to the National Association of REALTORS, the number of Existing Home Sales fell by a modest 140,000 units last month. It’s the fifth straight month in which home sales straddled the 4.5 million mark. The national housing inventory...

Mortgage Rates increased April 17, for a second day as MBS posted another day of losses.  Week over week rates are posted a 10bp improvement.  Although there was 3bp improvement lenders sill took advantage of the decline in MBS and increased Mortgage Rates. Feel Free to contact Your Mortgage Planner...

Auction: February 28, 2009 Registration begins: 7:30am Commercial Property Auction: 9:00am Residential Property Auction: 1:00pm The HomeStyle Team with RE/MAX Achievers currently has 18 foreclosure homes in the upcoming RE/MAX real estate auction. The HomeStyle Team auction property list is as follows: ...

Fannie Mae rolled-back one of its least popular mortgage guidelines updates of the last 12 months. Effective March 1, 2009, real estate investors can once again own and finance up to 10 individual properties.  The restriction reversal does come with new minimum requirements, however. Homeowners buying...

Image via Wikipedia A new $7,500 tax credit for first-time home buyers is a temporary incentive from the government (Read all of HR 3221) to boost interest in real estate – but the time frame to take advantage of the credit is limited  (Purchases on or after April 9, 2008 until July 1, 2009). The...