The federal housing finance agency (FHFA), the largest buyer of mortgages through Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (Fannie/Freddie), announced huge changes to there fee structure. In particular they are targeting high cost loans with big jumps for second homeowners. …
New York City’s housing market is undergoing a powerful rebound, fueled by New Yorkers trading up, out-of-staters moving in, and others looking beyond the pandemic’s aftershocks to make a long-term bet on the city. On the flip side, Boise prices…
Wow, it has been a wild ride during this pandemic, who thought there would be a national run on toilet paper. Fortunately, those days are over. You can now readily pick up Charmin (or whatever you like). The market is…
Retail sales in November jumped 1.7% exceeding all estimates by almost 20%. Fed announces a “pivot” and rate hikes to come. What does this mean for mortgage rates? How will this impact real estate purchases and refinances? What should you…
In my blogs I have talked about how typically when we have large inflation this will drastically slow the real estate market as interest rates rise. With all the craziness from the Covid bump occurring could just the opposite occur? …
Retail giants, fast-food chains, and ride-hailing companies are offering higher wages and cash payments. Referral and signing bonuses, rarely needed before to fill entry-level, low-wage jobs, are now commonplace. How will McDonald’s impact real estate prices? Will the impact be…
Zillow claims that ‘operational capacity constraints’ has caused the hiccup in its home-buying business, but some analysts argue that bigger issues may be afoot. Why is Zillow abruptly pulling back from their ibuyer program after recently announcing a huge funding…
Do residential rental properties with one to four units and second-home mortgages carry more risk? Apparently so says the U.S. Treasury Department. Such loans underwritten by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will end up costing you more under restrictions quietly…
There is a tidal wave of distressed homeowners who will need help,” Dave Uejio, the CFPB’s acting director, said in a statement; companies “that are unable to adequately manage loss mitigation can expect the bureau to take enforcement or supervisory…
For the first time in a year, since Covid-19 began spreading across the United States forcing Americans to stay home, retail alcohol sales have fallen almost 2%. Why the change in alcohol sales? No, people are not consuming less…