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Saturday, September 18, 2010

August sales and price report

California home sales edged up 1.8 percent from July, but were down 14.9 percent from August 2009, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) reported. The statewide median home price also increased 1.2 percent from July and was up 8.6 percent from a year ago.

“Buyers who are holding out should consider the opportunities in today’s market,” said C.A.R. President Steve Goddard. “Favorable home prices and interest rates at or near historic lows make housing affordability the best in recent memory. Anyone who is in a position to buy a home should do so before either of these key factors rise.”

Closed escrow sales of existing, single-family detached homes in California totaled 447,530 in August at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate, according to information collected by C.A.R. from more than 90 local REALTOR® associations statewide. Statewide home resale activity decreased 14.9 percent from the revised 526,110 sales pace recorded in August 2009. Sales in August 2010 increased 1.8 percent compared with July.

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

FHA to Raise Monthly Insurance Premiums by over 63%

FHA Gives Home Buyers One-Month Window
September 1, 2010--The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) is giving homeowners and buyers until October 4 to lock in a low monthly insurance premium, according to Gibran Nicholas, chairman of the CMPS Institute, an organization that trains and certifies mortgage bankers and brokers. “After October 4, the monthly insurance premiums on FHA loans will increase by over 63%.”

What does this mean for home buyers?
A home buyer purchasing a $200,000 home using a $193,000 FHA mortgage before October 4 would pay an insurance premium of $88.46 per month. If the same home buyer waits until after October 4, the insurance premium would jump to $148.01.

“In this example, the home buyer would lose $59.55 per month, or $7,146 over a 10-year timeframe,” Nicholas said. “Although the upfront mortgage insurance premium is going down after October 4, the real impact to the home buyer is actually a net increase in their out of pocket costs because the monthly premium is going up by 63%. Remember, sellers can pay the upfront premium or it can be financed into the loan amount, so homebuyers rarely pay the upfront premium out of pocket. On the other hand, the increase in the monthly premiums will be paid right out of the home buyer’s pocket with their mortgage payment each month.”