Monthly Archive for August, 2009

Weekly Mortgage Market Commentary 8/30/2009

The week that was

A little better in the rate markets; the 10 yr note yield fell 12 BPs and mortgages down about 8 BPs. Choppy trade once again characterized the action last week. Treasury had little trouble selling $109B of notes while new home sales increased 9.6 % in July. July durable goods orders increased 4.9%, the biggest monthly increase since July 2007, consumer confidence increased, and weekly jobless claims declined. Nice week but the stock market barley held on.

consumer-confidence-index

Freddie Mac weekly results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® reported 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 5.14 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending August 27, 2009, up from last week when it averaged 5.12 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.40 percent.

Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) averaged 4.67 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 4.57 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 6.03 percent.

Read more..

Share/Save/Bookmark

3% CHDAP DownPayment Assistance for San Jose First Time HomeBuyers

dollars This post will help you  find all the details on 3% down payment assistance program (CHDAP) for San Jose and rest of the Bay Area First Time Home Buyers. I have earlier blogged about CalHFA 5% downpayment program & $8000 First Time Home Buyer Credit in my earlier posts.

The California Homebuyer’s Downpayment Assistance Program (CHDAP) is a deferred payment, simple interest rate junior loan not to exceed 3% of the sales price or appraised value, whichever is less. The junior loan may be combined with a CalHFA first mortgage loan that is available for only 5% downpayment.

CHDAP may be used as additional down payment or to pay closing costs as allowed by CalHFA, the Lender and the mortgage insurer/guarantor.

Borrower Eligibilty - You must meet the following requirements to qualify for this Down Payment Assistance :

  • Be a first-time homebuyer
  • Occupy the property as your primary residence
  • Your income cannot exceed HCD-defined moderate income limits established for the county in which the borrower is purchasing
  • Meet credit, income and loan requirements of the CalHFA Conventional Loan Underwriting Guidelines.

Read more..

Share/Save/Bookmark

China to buy US Mortgages and what it means for you

shutterstock_10178383CNN Money reported that China’s $200 billion sovereign wealth fund, which suffered big paper losses on stakes in Morgan Stanley and Blackstone, is set to invest up to $2 billion in U.S. mortgages as it eyes a property market recovery.

Under the Public-Private Investment Plan (PPIP) launched earlier this year, the U.S. government plans to seed a number of public-private investment funds that would combine taxpayer money with private capital to buy as much as $40 billion in toxic securities from banks.

Compared with TALF, the new and smaller PPIP program focuses on safer toxic securities, which must have triple-A ratings from at least two agencies, and are debts guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), sources explained.

Read more..

Share/Save/Bookmark

San Jose Weekly Mortgage Market Commentary 8/23/2009

The week that was

Mortgage loan delinquency, borrowers 60 or more days past due, increased for the tenth straight quarter, hitting an all-time national average high of 5.81% for the second quarter of 2009, according to the latest data from TransUnion.com. This statistic is up 11.3% from the first quarter’s 5.22% average.

Sales of existing homes in July jumped at the fastest rate in 10 years. Sales of single-family homes increased 7.2% in July from a month earlier to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.24 million units, the National Association of Realtors said Friday.

us-existing-home-sales

July housing starts were down 1.0%; however June starts were originally reported up 3.6% but were revised today to +6.5%.  Total starts were 581K with single family starts up 490K.

Read more..

Share/Save/Bookmark

July 09 Home Sales Trend in Bay Area

Sales hit 4 year high, Median price up

Data Quick reported that Bay Area home sales rose last month to the highest level for a July in four years as deals above $500,000 continued to accelerate. The median sale price climbed above the prior month for the fourth consecutive month.

San Jose Mercury News reported The median price of houses sold in Santa Clara County in July shot to $540,000 in July, the first time home prices have topped the half-million-dollar mark since this past fall, in a sign that buyers are purchasing not just bargain-priced post-foreclosure properties, but more expensive homes as well.

A total of 8,771 new and resale houses and condos sold in the nine-county Bay Area last month. That was up 1.5 percent from 8,664 in June and up 15.6 percent from 7,586 in July 2008. The median price paid for a home in the nine-county region rose to $395,000, up 12.2 percent from $352,000 in June, but down 16.0 percent from $470,000 in July 2008, according to MDA DataQuick of San Diego.

bay-area-sales-median-price

Read more..

Share/Save/Bookmark

San Jose Weekly Mortgage Market Commentary 8/16/2009

The week that was

Continued market volatility; the mortgage market regained some losses from the week before as interest rate markets swung wildly from one economic report to the next. Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey® for 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 5.29 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending August 13, 2009, up from last week when it averaged 5.22 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.52 percent.

Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) averaged 4.75 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point, up from last week when it averaged 4.73 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 6.02 percent.

Note that these average rates are for Loan amounts $417,000 and lower.

July retail sales were much worse than market expectations and the U. of Michigan consumer sentiment index dipped to a new record low at 63.2.

univ-of-michigan-consumer-sentiment-index Read more..

Share/Save/Bookmark

CalHFA 5% Down Payment for San Jose First Time Home Buyers

calhfa-logoCalifornia Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA) recently launched it’s new program called Cal 30 - Conventional for First Time Home Buyers in San Jose, the San Francisco Bay Area and the rest of the state. This conventional first mortgage features a fixed interest rate, fully amortized loan over a 30-year term.  It has a maximum Loan-to-Value (LTV) of 95%. Below are some of the other highlights of the program:

Maximum Loan Amount - The loan amount is limited to the maximum Fannie Mae conforming loan limits. Currently, this is $417,000. Fannie Mae high balance loan limits are not available.

Property Eligibility - Sales price of the home cannot exceed CalHFA’s sales price limits established for the county in which the property is located. Be a single-family, one-unit residence, including approved condominium/PUDs. Manufactured housing is not permitted

Private Mortgage Insurance - Private Mortgage Insurance (MI) is required on all Cal30 Conventional loans with LTV greater than 80.00%.

Read more..

Share/Save/Bookmark

San Jose Weekly Mortgage Market Commentary 08/09/2009

The week that was

Job losses were a lot less than expected; still 247K jobs lost with no real insight as the when it will finally flatten. The unemployment rate, expected to be up to. 9.7% fell to 9.4%, down 0.1% from June. Weekly jobless claims on Thursday fell by 38K to 550K filings for unemployment.

united-states-unemployment-rate-chart

Both series were double blows to the gut for the rate markets, and manna for the stock market.

Read more..

Share/Save/Bookmark

FHA Streamline Refinance for Bay Area Residents

How to get FHA to FHA refinance with no Appraisal, Income or Credit verification

shutterstock_8501056If you live in the San Francisco Bay Area or rest of California state and if you currently have an FHA loan, you may be eligible for an FHA streamline refinance. This can help you lower your mortgage payment and mortgage rate. It could also help you move into a 30 year fixed loan from an Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM). And unlike a typical refinance, an FHA Streamline Loan doesn’t require Appraisal, Income or Credit verification. This is arguably the easiest loan process out there.

So how do you qualify for and what are the requirements for an FHA Streamline Refinance?

  • Your current mortgage must be an FHA Loan. Else your options are limited to going through a standard refinance which requires Income, Asset, Credit verificationn and also an appraisal.
  • Maximum Loan Amount is based on the lower of:
  1. Original Principal Balance, or
  2. The sum of existing mortgage balance (FHA Insured), Closing Cost, Pre-Paids to establish the impound account minus any up front mortgage insurance premium refund

Read more..

Share/Save/Bookmark

San Jose Weekly Mortgage Market Commentary 08/02/2009

The week that was

Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®) for 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 5.25 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending July 30, 2009, upfrom last week when it averaged 5.20 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.52 percent. Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) averaged 4.75 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point, up slightlyfrom last week when it averaged 4.74 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 6.07 percent.

Note that these rates are for loan amount $417,000 and lower.

The Treasury auctions to borrow $115B went OK with the biggest demand for the 7 yr note, a term not too popular with investors. June home sales were up 11.0% and got a lot of ink, but sales increasing 11.0% frm these very low levels, while a step in the right direction, isn’t likely to light a fire in the housing markets, it must keep going. The DJIA managed another increase, albeit a small one (+78).

Read more..

Share/Save/Bookmark