National News

Housing confidence up overall as rising home prices continue to divide the market

Fannie Mae released a report showing overall confidence increase in the housing market yet homebuyer confidence dips to an all time low, creating a split housing market. Fannie Mae’s 2017 Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI) increased to 88.0 which is three percentage points

jobs-report-government-bls-june-2015-housing-market-recovery
National Flood Insurance Program gets extension

Originally set to expire on Sept. 30, the National Flood Insurance Program was recently extended to Dec. 8 while Congress mulls reform of the law, which is overseen by the Federal Emergency Management Association. The extension comes at a

nar-generational-survey-2015-technology-tech-ipad-searching-homes-homebuyers-internet-apps
Redfin’s growing profits spur stock growth

In the second quarter of 2017, Redfin Corporation’s revenue increased 35 percent from the same time last year to $104.9 million, the company recently announced. The remarkable profit growth is causing Redfin stock to continue rising less than two

family-front-steps-house-porch-home-buyers-sellers
See how much Boston residents need to earn to buy a home in the area

A new study by HSH.com reveals what salary Americans must earn in order to afford a median-priced home in any given metro. For Boston residents, the cost of homeownership rings in at $98,518.71 a year, a 9.78 percent increase

PhysicianLoans increases lending ceiling to $750,000 for doctors, veterinarians

PhysicianLoans recently announced that it will now offer zero-down loans of up to $750,000 for medical professionals. As a part of the company’s Doctor Loan program, the financing rate will be available to dentists and veterinarians in addition to

TRID tila respa loan estimates buyers lender realtor agent closing costs education
Median down payment percentage is highest in three years

A recent report from ATTOM Data Solutions shows that the national median down payment percentage is at its highest in three years. ATTOM Data Solutions recently released its Q2 2017 Residential Property Loan Origination Report, which found that homes purchased with

April-home-prices-CoreLogic-sales-inventory-2015
CoreLogic HPI: Home prices are up across the board

According to the CoreLogic Home Price Index (HPI), home prices increased significantly both month-over-month and year-over-year in July. The study analyzed listing prices for a comprehensive set of single-family attached and detached homes in gathering its findings. Nationally, the average

Could changes to DACA affect homeownership rates?

On Tuesday, the White House officially announced President Trump’s decision to phase out the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, pending a sixth month grace period. Though economists remain unsure about what implications — if any — a

HUD plan to ease taxpayer burden by changing reverse-mortgage program

Due to upcoming changes to the reverse-mortgage plan, most new homebuyers will soon face bigger upfront premiums, but lower rates over lifetime of the loan. The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced a plan to increase the downpayment

Rates of homeownership are still drawn upon racial lines, study finds

Buying a home remains a goal for many Americans. However, the road to homeownership is rockier for some than for others. A new Apartment List report reveals that the rate of homeownership in the United States varies greatly by

Housing demand drops from June record high, still up from last year

Redfin’s Housing Demand Index dropped 5 percent in July from June’s all-time high, but is still up almost 30 percent from last year. The index, which currently sits at 124, is based on Redfin customers’ home tour requests and

Pending home sales dip for fourth time in five months

With homes flying off the market and a dearth of new listings, pending home sales around the country dipped 0.8 percent in July from June, according to a new report from the National Association of Realtors. While the slip

Housing affordability proves problematic for Boston’s low-income renters

A new study by Zillow reveals that rent growth continues to eclipse income growth for Boston’s lowest-income residents. The report – which considered both multifamily rent prices and U.S. Census data – concluded that even the cheapest apartments in

Single women build less home equity over time than single men, report finds

A new Redfin report shows that since 2012 single women have earned about 92 cents for every dollar of home equity earned by single men. In an analysis of 79,517 homes purchased in 18 of the largest cities by

New data shows national home prices jump to all-time high

The latest S&P Dow Jones Indices shows that in June 2017, home prices around the country continued to increase, marking a year of gains. Prices jumped 5.8 percent over May 2017, according to the data released Aug. 29. The

National Association of Realtors urges reauthorization of federal flood insurance program

In the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) has created a petition encouraging members to support the reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), which is set to expire Sept. 30. The NFIP was