Melissa Bayles's (melissabayles) Blog

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Real Estate Agent - The Real Estate Geeks A Team of Prudential California Realty
RECENT BLOG POSTS
All day, every day, conforming and FHA mortgage rates in California are in flux.  Rates move in response to hundreds of factors which exact varying levels of influence. Among the biggest influences on mortgage rates is inflation.  When inflation is unexpectedly high, mortgage rates tend to rise q...
08/09/2010
In 2009, the median size of new homes started was roughly 2,100 square feet. This figure was down from 2,200 square feet between 2005-2007 which, itself, was down from 2,350 in 2004. Homes are getting smaller across the United States. But, as compared to the nation's largest homes, the shrinking ...
07/30/2010
A new loan quality initiative from Fannie Mae is making it harder for home buyers and refinancing homeowners everywhere to close on a mortgage. Beginning June 1, 2010, with all new applications, Fannie Mae wants lenders to verify that borrowers have not taken on new debt during the underwriting p...
07/04/2010
On the first Friday of each month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its Non-Farm Payrolls data from the month prior.  The release is more commonly called "the jobs report" -- a major factor in mortgage rates and monthly payments. Especially now. With the recession officially over and growt...
07/04/2010
The Pending Home Sales Index shot higher in April as low mortgage rates and a soon-to-expire federal tax credit spurred home buying across the county. A "pending home sale" is a home that's under contract to sell but not yet closed. Region-by-region, April's pending home sales varied versus March...
06/29/2010
The Consumer Confidence Index is rising, a potentially double-edged sword for Americans, in general. According to The Conference Board, economic confidence is as high as it's been since August 2007 -- 4 months before the start of the recession.  Americans are optimistic again. Confidence matters ...
06/29/2010
The supply of newly-built homes for sales plummeted in April, a positive indicator for the housing market as we head into the summer months. It's no wonder that homebuilders are breaking new ground at the fastest clip in 2 years.  At the current sales pace, the nation's complete supply of new hom...
06/25/2010
Because of strife in Greece, Spain and North Korea, conforming mortgage rates are back to all-time lows. They're at levels not seen in 50 years.  For homeowners that missed the Refi Boom of November 2009, it's a second chance. In this well-presented, 3-minute video from NBC's The Today Show, you...
06/25/2010
Home values rose in March, according to the Federal Home Finance Agency's most recent Home Price Index. Values were reported higher by 0.3 percent, on average, from February. We use the phrase "on average" because the Home Price Index is broad-reaching, national housing statistic. It ignores the ...
06/22/2010
Sales of existing homes rose in April, buoyed by an expiring home buyer tax credit and exceptionally low mortgage rates. As compared to March, April's Existing Home Sales rose by 410,000 units nationwide -- the second straight month of large gains. An "existing home" is a home resold by a prior o...
06/13/2010
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