Carl Rizzuto's (crizzuto) Blog

Home Values Climb 0.8 Percent In April Maybe homes in Hobe Sound are holding value better than we thought. Between March and April of this year, home values rose 0....

A Simple Explanation Of The Federal Reserve Statement (June 22, 2011 Edition)   Wednesday, the Federal Open Market Committee voted to leave the Fed Funds Rate unchanged within its current target range of 0.000-0.250 percent. The vote was 10-0 - the fourth straight unanimous vote for the nation's ...

Homebuilder Confidence Slips To 9-Month Low   Despite rising new home sales and an increase in building permits nationwide, home builder confidence slipped to a 9-month low in June. The monthly Housing Market Index from the National Association of Homebuilders registered 13 this month - three tic...

Monthly Foreclosure Count Drops For 16th Straight Month   Foreclosure rates are falling. According to foreclosure-tracking firm RealtyTrac, monthly foreclosure filings fell 2 percent in May to just under 215,000 filings nationwide. A foreclosure filing is defined as any one of the following: a de...

Mortgage Rates Surge On May Retail Sales Figures   The jobs market is recovering slower than expected, and so is housing. But neither condition has slowed U.S. consumers. According to the Census Bureau, Retail Sales rose for the 11th straight month in May. Excluding cars and auto parts, sales rec...

Moving To A New City? See How Much Your Cost Of Living Will Change.   It's a fact: It's more expensive to live in some cities than others. Beyond just the costs of buying a home, different cities also carry a different Cost of Living. For households relocating from New York and  across state line...

Do You Know What Questions To Ask Your Lender?   A mortgage comes with many moving pieces and understanding them is the key getting a great deal. Unfortunately, studies show that few Americans have a firm grasp of how mortgages work - from mortgage types to mortgage fees. In this back-to-basics i...