Sarasota Mortgage Rates | The Mortgage Skinny

There are some common misperceptions about what the “market price” is for a home. First, the market price is NOT the seller’s asking price. Nor is the price suggested by a real estate agent, or even the value determined by a professional appraiser.

The market price for a home is simply whatever a buyer is willing to pay a seller for the home - PERIOD. Whena  buyer and seller are both happy at the conclusion of the transaction, the true market price has been achieved.

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Hello all, I subscribe to a service that keeps me up to date with the latest market updates and economic events. I found it interesting that in one of the articles it talked about weather and how it affects interest rates and home sales.. Here is a quick overview of the article.

The mortgage interest rate markets are subject to an enormous number of factors. Most analysts agree that weather can have an effect on market activity. Although the effects are seldom long lasting, the effects of weather on monthly data can be quite significant.

Relatively mild weather across the United States so far this winter has helped to alleviate some of the energy demand concerns analysts had. However, the fear remains that energy prices could skyrocket if temperatures fall below average and the demand for energy increases.

The economic effects of various weather occurrences may cause only a temporary change in economic activity. However, those times of change can have a lasting impact on people obtaining mortgages. Despite the slight rate increases seen recently, mortgage interest rates remain historically favorable for borrowers. Now is a great time to take advantage of rates at these levels.

Here’s some news that should warm your heart: For the first time since the winter of 2001-02, prices for residential heating fuel (petroleum products and natural gas) are projected to be either near or lower than last year for most Americans this winter. Read the rest of this entry »

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Making home improvements has almost become a national pasttime. With the recent slowdown in the housing market, some experts predict that even more Americans will choose to remain in their homes and fix them up, rather than try to sell and move up to a larger or newer home.

If you’re considering making more home improvements or renovations, it’s smart to consider not only the value of the improvements from a lifestyle standpoint, but also how well they will hold their financial value. Of course, almost any improvement will have “value” to you, the homeowner, as you enjoy more space, more light, etc. But you should also consider how the project will impact your home’s value when it comes time to sell.

While few renovations will fully pay for themeselves, some clearly hold their value better than others. To help homeowners determine what kind of improvements hold their value best, the National Association of Realtors and Remodeling magazine publish an annual “Cost vs. Value Report” each year.

Here are some recommendations based on the most recent report:

1. Kitchens are at the heart of it - The kitchen is the heart of the house for most buyers and is usually a smart place to invest your home improvement dollars. Read the rest of this entry »

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Buyers are in the Drivers Seat. The long anticipated slowdown in the housing market appears to have arrived. In my own opinion, the market has settled and the applications are on their way up! I’ve spoken to many other Mortgage Planners and their saying the same thing. More applications and closings mean more home sales. Of course, gains or declines in home prices vary widely from one region of the country to another, as well as within broad regions. Areas that saw the largest and fastest rates of appreciation, like along the coastlines, are generally seeing the most drastic slowdowns or even declines in home values, while some areas where appreciation has been slower continue to experience at least moderate appreciation.

From what I’ve seen I would say that home prices are flat in my area, they haven’t depreciated so much as they haven’t seen much appreciation. I’m talking about Sarasota, Florida where we saw some of the highest appreciation in the country the last couple of years.

In the new environment, what are some strategies for homebuyers and home sellers? The first thing to keep in mind is that, for th emost part, things have shifted from a seller’s market into a buyer’s market. (is that a bad thing? NO) The main thing this means for sellers is that they must be realistic when pricing their homes. How many people did you see asking for the moon last year and then buyers would have a bidding war? Too often! Read the rest of this entry »

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Here’s a quick update I found on CNNMoney.com that shows you what the market is looking like.  After reading this article I have to agree that the applications are starting to pick up for both purchases and refinances.  Even though we’ve been seeing a slight increase in interest rates over the past week the average rates for a 30 year fixed is right around 6.25% which is still a great rate.

NEW YORK (Reuters) — U.S. mortgage applications skyrocketed during the first week of 2007 as interest rates fell for the first time in five weeks, lending support to the view that the housing market is stabilizing, an industry trade group said Wednesday.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity, which includes both refinancing and purchasing loans, jumped 16.6 percent to 671.1 for the week ended Jan. 5.

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Looking to refinance and don’t quite grasp the concept of the HELOC loan? Should you go with a conventional or HELOC…

First let’s take a look at a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC). Think of a line of credit as a mortgage in which the bank lends you a maximum amount instead of a fixed amount. You’re able to use the line of credit like a credit card in which you’re only charged interest on the amount you’ve used. This differs from standard loans because the borrower is not advanced the entire sum of money up front, although it is possible to be fronted the money with a HELOC as well. There are positives and negatives when obtaining a line of credit and depending on what your short term or long term goal is, this may or may not be the mortgage for you.

Some of the major downfalls for obtaining a HELOC is its exposure to interest-rate risk. All HELOC’s are Adjustable Rate Mortgages ARMs but are much riskier than conventional ARMs. Changes in the market impact a HELOC’s rate very quickly. Example: If the prime rate changes on January 31, the HELOC rate will change effective February 1. Standard ARMs, in contrast, are available with initial fixed-rate periods as long as 10 years. The prime rate is based on the Fed Funds rate so when Ben Bernanke, the Fed Chairman raises the funds rate, then up goes your HELOC rate. Oh and did I mention that there are no caps on HELOC’s?

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