Single Women Homebuyers

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Single women account for the fastest growing segment of the home-buying population in the U.S. This trend has been on the rise for many years. From 1994 to 2002, the number of unmarried women owning homes climbed from 13.9 million to 17.5 million. By 2004, 18% of all homebuyers were single women. According to the latest NAR profile of homebuyers and sellers, that number has risen to 22%.

Factors leading to this increase include the following demographic trends: better education, more women working and seeking financial independence, and young women delaying marriage. Also, women have significantly increased their purchasing power. They own and operate 38% of all businesses in America and make up nearly 40% of all business school graduates. More immediately, historically low interest rates, affordable home prices, ample housing supply and the first-time homebuyer tax credit are fueling the increase of single women homebuyers.

Statistically, women do more research and spend a longer period of time searching for a home. They’re also more inclined to make home repairs. Studies show that nearly half of all purchases made in Home Depot and Lowes are made by women. And 94% of women homeowners claimed to have completed a home improvement project by themselves in the last five years.

Some home characteristics that experts say appeal to women: a safe community (single women account for a large number of condominium purchases where they find a sense of security), a home office (home-based businesses are very popular among women), maintenance friendly yards, lots of storage, and natural light, particularly in the master suite and bathroom. Statistically, women are also more likely to work with female mortgage brokers, attorneys and real estate professionals.

Anthony Crecco
   The Crecco Companies
   www.CreccoRealEstate.com
   www.CreccoBordonaro.com

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Fannie, Freddie Single-Family Home Delinquencies Continue to Rise

Delinquencies on single-family homes continued to rise at the two big government-sponsored mortgage lenders, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, indicating that problems have yet to level off.

Fannie Mae said the delinquency rate on loans in its single-family guarantee business rose 0.28 percentage points to 4.45 percent in August, the latest month Fannie has data for, well above 1.57 percent in August 2008.

At Freddie Mac, delinquencies on single family homes rose 0.20 percentage points in September to 3.33 percent of its loan book, compared with 1.22 percent in September 2008.

Fannie Mae said that September data for its mortgage investment portfolio showed an annualized growth rate of 22.4 percent, to $792.7 billion, for an annualized 0.9 percent increase in the year to date. In September 2008, the portfolio totaled $761.4 billion.

The company’s total loan book increased at a 5.2 percent annualized rate in September, to $3.243 trillion, representing an annualized 5.7 percent increase for the year to date.

Fannie Mae data showed that it provided $67 billion in liquidity to the market, with net retained commitments of $7.8 billion and mortgage-backed securities issuances of $59.2 billion.

Fannie Mae mortgage-backed securities and other guarantees grew at a compound annualized rate of 6.9 percent in September to $2.821 trillion, representing an annualized 10.8 percent increase for the year to date.

The multifamily delinquency rate was unchanged at 0.56 percent in August, compared to only 0.16 percent in August 2008.

Freddie Mac said its mortgage investment portfolio grew by an annualized 7.3 percent rate in September, increasing to $784.2 billion, representing an annualized decrease of 3.4 percent for the year to date. In September 2008, the portfolio was $736.9 billion.

Freddie Mac’s multifamily delinquency rate rose slightly in September, to 0.11 percent from 0.10 percent in August. A year earlier it was 0.01 percent.

Freddie Mac’s refinance-loan purchase volume was $21.4 billion in September, down from $35.6 billion in August.

The GSE’s total mortgage portfolio increased at a 0.8 percent annualized rate in September to $2.243 trillion, representing an annualized 2.1 percent increase for the year to date.

 

THE CRECCO COMPANIES

Real Estate  Remodeling  Social Media

Anthony J Crecco

Short Sale and Loan Modification Expert

Thornwood NY  10594

914.449.6547

www.CreccoRealEstate.com

www.WestchesterCountyHomeNews.com

www.GetLoanModNow.com

www.InvestorSolutionsGroup.com

Posted via email from WESTCHESTER COUNTY DISTRESSED PROPERTY INFORMATION

How Credit Cards Can Help You Save Money and Lower Debt

It's no surprise that credit cards sometimes lead to debt. But did you know some smart credit card issuers are trying to turn them into tools for paying it off? Responding to consumer concerns in a troubled economy, banks and other lenders have been redesigning rewards programs to help consumers pay down debts and even save money for retirement.

A quick inventory of rewards programs we did turned up some innovative options:

• Cash-back credit cards that automatically apply the rebate toward outstanding loan balances
• Cards that funnel rebates earned on purchases toward retirement accounts
• Cards that offer "529" college savings rewards

Other lenders offer "planners" to calculate the time required to pay down balances and project how a major purchase might affect the balance of an account. Still another bank offers a program where consumers can consolidate high interest debt into a fixed-rate personal loan and use the bank's online budgeting tool to try to spend less. They can put the money they've saved toward loan balances and their rewards either go toward paying loan principal or a savings or checking account.

Wondering what's in for the banks? While it may be true that they stand to lose some of the profit they'd make on interest if consumers pay down their debts, consumers who can't pay their bills aren't of much benefit to banks, either. Making customers happy is good business sense no matter what business you're in.

So if you wish you could put less money toward your debt and more toward savings, do some investigation. With some diligent research, you're sure to find the right card for your needs.

 

THE CRECCO COMPANIES

Real Estate  Remodeling  Social Media

Anthony J Crecco

Short Sale and Loan Modification Expert

Thornwood NY  10594

914.449.6547

www.CreccoRealEstate.com

www.WestchesterCountyHomeNews.com

www.GetLoanModNow.com

www.InvestorSolutionsGroup.com

Posted via email from WESTCHESTER COUNTY DISTRESSED PROPERTY INFORMATION

Pending Home Sales Rise for Eighth Straight Month

Pending home sales rose again, marking eight consecutive monthly gains for the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) forward-looking sales indicator – the longest streak since measurement began in 2001.

NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index, based on contracts signed in September, rose 6.1 percent compared to August’s reading, and is 21.2 percent higher than September 2008. The gain from a year ago is the largest annual increase on record, raising the index to its highest level since December 2006, NAR said.

Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, said the momentum comes from the government’s homebuyer tax incentive. “What we’re witnessing is a rush of first-time buyers trying to beat the expiration of the tax credit at the end of this month,” Yun said.

Proponents lobbying for an extension of the homebuyer tax credit say the accelerated pace of sales transactions could continue if Congress moves to extend and expand the housing tax break this week, as promised.

According to Yun, if the increased home-purchase demand can be sustained, home values will stabilize sooner rather than over-correcting.

NAR estimates that approximately three million renters are now financially well-qualified to buy a median-priced home – a sizable, pent-up demand that Yun says is just waiting to be tapped.

Yun added, though, that strong near-term reports should not be overstated. “We’re clearly not out of the woods because an excess of homes remains on the market despite recent improvements,” he said. “Although current inventory is getting closer to price equilibrium, foreclosures will continue to enter the pipeline. An extended and expanded tax credit would help absorb this incoming inventory.”

 

THE CRECCO COMPANIES

Real Estate  Remodeling  Social Media

Anthony J Crecco

Short Sale and Loan Modification Expert

Thornwood NY  10594

914.449.6547

www.CreccoRealEstate.com

www.WestchesterCountyHomeNews.com

www.GetLoanModNow.com

www.InvestorSolutionsGroup.com

Your Home Sold Guaranteed or I will Buy it for Cash

SEARCH THE MLS LIKE AN AGENT

www.westchesterhomesearch.listingbook.com

Posted via email from WESTCHESTER COUNTY DISTRESSED PROPERTY INFORMATION

Make your Life Simple

For many, life is a hodgepodge of never-ending commitments. Yet few of us can be truly healthy or happy without regular periods of downtime. While there is nothing inherently wrong with busyness, those of us who over-commit or over-extend ourselves potentially face exhaustion and burnout. When you feel overwhelmed by your commitments, examining your motivation for taking on so many obligations can help you understand why you feel compelled to do so much. You may discover that you are being driven by fear that no one else will do the job or guilt that you aren’t doing enough. To regain your equilibrium and clear the clutter from your calendar, simplify your life by establishing limits regarding what you will and will not do based on your personal priorities.

Determining where your priorities lie can be as easy as making two lists: one that outlines all those obligations that are vital to your wellbeing, such as work, meditation, and exercise, and another that describes everything you do that is not directly related to your wellbeing. Although there will likely be items in the latter list that excite your passion or bring you joy, you may discover that you devote a large portion of your time to unnecessary activities. To simplify your schedule, consider which of these unnecessary activities add little value to your life and edit them from your agenda. Remember that you may need to ask for help, say no firmly, or delegate responsibility in order to distance yourself from such encumbrances. However, as you divest yourself of non-vital obligations that cause you stress, serve no purpose, or rob you of opportunities to refresh yourself, you will feel more energetic and enthusiastic about life in general.

If simplifying your schedule seems prohibitively difficult and you still feel pressed to take on more, try imagining how each new commitment will impact your life before saying yes. When you consider the hassle associated with superfluous obligations, you may be surprised to see that your schedule is impeding your attempts to grow as an individual. Your willingness to pare down your agenda, no matter how gradual your progress, will empower you to retake active control of the life that defines you.

Anthony Crecco
   The Crecco Companies
   www.CreccoRealEstate.com
   www.CreccoBordonaro.com

Posted via email from WESTCHESTER COUNTY DISTRESSED PROPERTY INFORMATION

Top 3 Real Estate Mortgage Scams: What You Need to Know

RISMEDIA, November 2, 2009—Being a homeowner is one of the biggest dreams for the American people. Due to record numbers of homeownership and cheap mortgage rates, individuals who did not own a home previously are now looking for mortgages for financing their ambitions. On certain occasions, the dream of homeownership is associated with a cost that exceeds the mortgage. 

For finding out how much your mortgage is going to cost you, a loan mortgage calculator often works as a user-friendly tool. Nevertheless, this tool can’t save you all the time. Similar to other forms of investment, real estate mortgage loans are also subject to scams. Mortgage frauds and scams can make you lose thousands of dollars on interest as a minimum because of excessive fees and other hidden costs. The worst that can happen is that you can lose your home to foreclosure. 

According to industry professionals, there are three principal or familiar types of real estate fraud: 

1. Identity theft via mortgage request
2. Bait and switch
3. Loan flipping 

For preventing scams, it has been witnessed that offense is the best defense. Understand the truth and don’t hesitate to make queries. 

Bait and switch is a fraudulent sales technique where a loan product is publicized at a lucrative rate (bait). However, the product or rate is subsequently changed for the gain of the lender (switch). This is an utterly illegitimate and deceitful practice. For instance, one interest rate is assured at the time of selling a loan, but a bigger rate is provided at the time of closing. 

When you’re obtaining a pre-approval or mortgage quote, you believe that your question with the lender is secret, right? You’re wrong. On many occasions, important financial details about you and your mortgage requirements are hacked by vying lenders. This can happen within 24 hours of your credit bureau inquiry. Your loan officer is even unaware of this. Many firms provide countrywide accessibility to your financial details to the lenders and everybody in your city who requested for a mortgage within the last 24 hours. Any other lender can talk to these individuals the following day and give them a pre-approval for an improved mortgage loan. 

One more dilemma is mortgage solicitation through telephone, the Internet or door to door. These scams involve filling in an application through fax, the Internet or over the telephone and often the rates are phony. However, it is not the largest issue to be bothered about–it is nothing but identity theft. Even though the rates are legitimate, the company would get all your important details such as your social security number that can result in mortgage scam or identity theft. 

Another type of mortgage scam that is prevalent in the real estate industry is loan flipping. Loan flipping denotes frequent refinancing of a mortgage within a small time frame with very small gains to the borrower. It takes place when a borrower can’t keep up with the planned payments or constantly combines other unsecured loans into a new secured loan at the request of a lender. Lenders flipping loans ask for too much origination fee with every consecutive refinancing. They might ask for these fees on the basis of the whole loan amount, not only on the increased amount summed up with the loan principal through refinancing. In addition, every refinancing might attract prepayment penalties that can be funded as a portion of the overall loan amount, accumulating the debt of the borrower. 

If you’re buying a home, looking for a home equity loan or considering a mortgage refinance, it is better to work with a trustworthy lender. You must shop around and do some homework to get the best offers. Try to stay away from furnishing any details until you’re confident that the company or individual you’re talking to is right for you. 

For more information, visit www.mortgagefit.com (http://www.mortgagefit.com). 

Anthony Crecco
   The Crecco Companies
   www.CreccoRealEstate.com
   www.CreccoBordonaro.com

Posted via email from WESTCHESTER COUNTY DISTRESSED PROPERTY INFORMATION

Last Week in the News

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The Commerce Department announced that gross domestic product — the total output of goods and services produced in the U.S. — increased at an annual rate of 3.5% in the third quarter of 2009. The rebound ended four consecutive quarters of contracting economic activity, the longest period of decline since quarterly records began in 1947.

The Conference Board reported that its consumer confidence index fell to 47.7 in October from a revised 53.4 in September. Economists had expected a reading of 53.5. The index was benchmarked at 100 in 1985, a year chosen because it was neither a peak nor a trough in consumer confidence.

The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller 20-city housing price index rose 1% in August. It was the third consecutive monthly gain and follows a 1.2% increase in July.

Orders for durable goods — items expected to last three or more years — rose 1% in September after falling a revised 2.6% in August. Among the areas of strong growth were orders for heavy machinery, up 7.9%, the best showing since an 8.5% increase in March 2008.

The Commerce Department reported new home sales fell 3.6% in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 402,000 from a downwardly revised rate of 417,000 in August. It was the first decline since March.

Initial claims for unemployment benefits rose by 1,000 to 530,000 in the week ending October 24. The figure was higher than the 525,000 that economists had forecast. The number of people continuing to claim jobless benefits in the week ending October 17 fell by 148,000 to 5.8 million.

Upcoming on the economic calendar are reports on construction spending and pending home sales on November 2, factory orders on November 3 and wholesale trade on November 6.

Anthony Crecco
   The Crecco Companies
   www.CreccoRealEstate.com
   www.CreccoBordonaro.com

Posted via email from WESTCHESTER COUNTY DISTRESSED PROPERTY INFORMATION