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By cbasile@housingwire.com Black Knight’s latest Mortgage Monitor report finds that rising home prices have both decreased the number of borrowers underwater on their mortgages while increasing the amount of equity available to homeowners. In fact, home equity could hit a record high this summer. Plus, a mixed-use development on a landfill? Check out the article to learn more. …read more

From:: Real Estate Wire

By Susanne Dwyer

Confidence in housing is again at an all-time high in the Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI), showing the share of home sellers who believe now is a good time to sell reaching a new record in June—a sure sign of a seller’s market. The HPSI overall posted 88.3, up 2.1 percentage points from May.

“The June HPSI reading matches the previous record set in February and reflects the trend toward a sellers’ market that respondents indicated last month,” says Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae. “Consumers are also growing more optimistic about their ability to get a mortgage, and lenders expect credit standards to ease further going forward.”

The share of sellers who believe now is a good time to sell moved up seven percentage points in June to 39 percent, according to the HPSI. The share of homebuyers who believe now is a good time to buy, at the same time, also rose, but by just three percentage points to 30 percent.

Those surveyed who believe home prices will keep climbing jumped, as well—six percentage points to 46 percent—following a backtrack in May. Those surveyed who believe mortgage rates will lower in the next 12 months moved up three percentage points to 49 percent.

“While consumer optimism on [mortgage credit accessibility] is as high as we’ve seen in the survey’s seven-year history, it’s worth nothing that this record is relative to the fairly tight standards in place post-crisis,” Duncan says. “Nevertheless, in the face of very tight housing supply, easing credit standards may fail to have the desired effect and could have the unintended consequence of fueling further house price increases.”

Source: Fannie Mae

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From:: Finance and Economy

By Susanne Dwyer

Confidence in housing is again at an all-time high in the Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI), showing the share of home sellers who believe now is a good time to sell reaching a new record in June—a sure sign of a seller’s market. The HPSI overall posted 88.3, up 2.1 percentage points from May.

“The June HPSI reading matches the previous record set in February and reflects the trend toward a sellers’ market that respondents indicated last month,” says Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae. “Consumers are also growing more optimistic about their ability to get a mortgage, and lenders expect credit standards to ease further going forward.”

The share of sellers who believe now is a good time to sell moved up seven percentage points in June to 39 percent, according to the HPSI. The share of homebuyers who believe now is a good time to buy, at the same time, also rose, but by just three percentage points to 30 percent.

Those surveyed who believe home prices will keep climbing jumped, as well—six percentage points to 46 percent—following a backtrack in May. Those surveyed who believe mortgage rates will lower in the next 12 months moved up three percentage points to 49 percent.

“While consumer optimism on [mortgage credit accessibility] is as high as we’ve seen in the survey’s seven-year history, it’s worth nothing that this record is relative to the fairly tight standards in place post-crisis,” Duncan says. “Nevertheless, in the face of very tight housing supply, easing credit standards may fail to have the desired effect and could have the unintended consequence of fueling further house price increases.”

Source: Fannie Mae

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From:: Real Estate News

By Susanne Dwyer

Mortgage rates are hedging up, with the average 30-year, fixed rate jumping from 3.88 percent last week to 3.96 percent this week, according to Freddie Mac’s recently released Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®). The average 15-year, fixed rate also leapt, from 3.17 percent last week to 3.22 percent this week, while the average 5-year, Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable rate moved from 3.17 percent last week to 3.21 percent this week.

“Global interest rates turned up sharply over the last week,” says Sean Becketti, chief economist at Freddie Mac. “The 10-year Treasury yield was no exception, increasing 10 basis points in a holiday-shortened week. The 30-year mortgage rate followed suit, rising eight basis points to 3.96 percent.”

Source: Freddie Mac

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…read more

From:: Finance and Economy

By Susanne Dwyer

Mortgage rates are hedging up, with the average 30-year, fixed rate jumping from 3.88 percent last week to 3.96 percent this week, according to Freddie Mac’s recently released Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®). The average 15-year, fixed rate also leapt, from 3.17 percent last week to 3.22 percent this week, while the average 5-year, Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable rate moved from 3.17 percent last week to 3.21 percent this week.

“Global interest rates turned up sharply over the last week,” says Sean Becketti, chief economist at Freddie Mac. “The 10-year Treasury yield was no exception, increasing 10 basis points in a holiday-shortened week. The 30-year mortgage rate followed suit, rising eight basis points to 3.96 percent.”

Source: Freddie Mac

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From:: Real Estate News

By Susanne Dwyer

Now up for grabs: one of Diane Keaton’s early restoration projects, a Laguna Beach house steps from the sand, with views of the Pacific Ocean, beach and rugged cliffs. Built in 1928 for the J. Roy Smith orange tree groves family, when the idea of having a beach house was coming of age in California, there were many excellent lots from which to choose. The Smiths chose a bluff overlooking the wide beach of Shaw’s Cove, which afforded protection from storm waves and an expansive view. The home was built in the Mediterranean Revival style with stucco, decorative Spanish tile accents, wood beams, carved doors, ironwork and terraces surrounded by lush plantings and an outdoor fireplace to toast one’s toes on chilly evenings.

At 71, Keaton has not slowed down. In addition to having written three books, she is well-known for her photography. The mother of two adopted children, she also owns her own wine company, The Keaton. In her spare time, she is a home flipper with a long history of buying, remodeling and selling houses in enviable locations—houses that exude as much charm as the woman herself.

Keaton is one of a number of Hollywood celebrities including Ellen DeGeneres, Jennifer Aniston and Meg Ryan who collect and sell homes as a side gig. No stranger to building restoration, Keaton watched her father do the same for most of her childhood. In 2004, Keaton bought the beach house for $7.5 million and worked her magic in the restoration, preserving and accentuating its fine original details. Taking two years to complete, she sold the 4,158-square-foot, four-bedroom, six-bath house in 2006 for $12.75 million. The space recently went back on the market impeccably maintained, with the same staggering views through the receding oceanfront glass walls that open the living and dining rooms to the trade winds. The wide sand beach at the bottom of the private stairs has the rarity of a water toy garage for kayaks and paddle boards.

Listed by: Hanz Radlein, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties and Michael Johnson, Villa Real Estate
Listed for: $15.989 million

Image Credit: Robert Hansen Photography

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From:: Real Estate News