Market Watch reported today that Beazer Homes is quitting the mortgage-origination business and that the embattled builder is closing its mortgage unit, exiting several housing markets.

While they are not currently planning on leaving the Raleigh, NC area, they are quitting the home building business in Charlotte, NC. It plans to complete all homes that it is currently building in those five cities and will determine how to dispose of its land holdings in those markets.

In addition, Market Watch reported,” The builder said it found evidence that workers in its mortgage business violated Housing and Urban Development regulations. Its probe also uncovered evidence of other accounting irregularities that will lead to expected restatements. It has negotiated waivers of default from its lenders due to its failure to report financial results on time.” Read the article: Beazer Homes

This is disturbing news, but represents the challenges faces by new construction home buyers that do not have the assistance of an experienced real estate agent.  It is important that home buyers understand that Builders & Developers have agents on site who represent the Builders & Developers and many times these representatives are not licensed real estate agents. Builder representatives by definition represent the seller or developer. As a real estate professional we recommend that every buyer have their own professional representation when purchasing any real estate property. 

Check out The Poling Team Realtor® Services for New Construction Home Buyers by clicking here: Services for New Construction Home Buyers

One of indicators that those who are involved in investing in the stock market, the buying and selling of real estate or other kinds of investments is the Consumer Confidence Index. The Consumer Confidence Survey that determines the index is based on a representative sample of 5,000 U.S. households. This index is not based upon any kind of reality or scientific measurement of how the economy is actually performing; rather it is based upon the opinions of a random group of 5000 people.

If you read the reports the index has been declining since the summer, but consumers have not lost their holiday spirit and anticipate spending more on gifts this season than they did last Christmas. So despite how they feel about the direction of the economy, at least those surveyed are going to do the opposite. They are going to spend more.

Another facet of the survey covered what consumers are thinking about future jobs. “The outlook for the labor market was also more pessimistic. The percent of consumers expecting more jobs in the months ahead fell to 10.8 percent from 13.3 percent, while those anticipating fewer jobs rose to 23.1 percent from 20.2 percent.”

Again, this is based upon the feelings of these 5,000 people who were surveyed. It is not based upon any scientific evidence. The recent job numbers came in better than anticipated and last months figures were adjusted upward.

So one of the indicators that is used to help in day-to-day decision-making and long-term planning in based upon how 5,000 people feel about things. And those feelings are quite fickle and as we have seen their actions are inconsistent with their thinking.

You can read the November 27 Press Release here: The Consumer Confidence Press Release

I am always amazed at the amount of negative news that is out there on almost every topic. As we have seen over the last months real estate has been talked down by just about everyone. Home selling stats are used to generate uncertainty and that uncertainty generates fear and fear affects what is bought and sold.

I do not mean to downplay the effect of the national downturn in real estate, but some in the news media jump on every statistic and then spin the worst case scenario. Today, I am happy to report positive news regarding real estate.

Today, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released the results of its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending November 30, 2007 and the mortgage volume soared after Thanksgiving. There had been an error in reporting due to Thanksgiving shortened week and the numbers had to be revised.

Read the full article: Weekly Mortgage Application Survey

Most of this increase appears to have been a result of refinancing as a result of lower interest rates. However, this still is good news for home sellers and home buyers. Lower interest rates are a good thing for real estate sales.

Visit our website and see our new home search tool or try in out by clicking here: Best Home Pro Search
 

Yesterday, I discussed a 4th Tip on How to Avoid Foreclosure on your Raleigh, NC Home. Today, I will give three more but first, just to review, here are the first 4 tips on how to avoid foreclosure on your Raleigh, NC home:

1. Don’t ignore the issue
2. As soon as you have a problem paying, give your lender a call..
3. Respond to all mail from your lender.
4. Know Your Rights.

The next tip is to prioritize your spending. Your top priority after your health care should be to keep your home. You may want to consider paying your mortgage payment before paying any other debts.

Number six, don’t be taken in by mortgage scammers. You may run across someone claiming to be able to prevent foreclosure. Don’t sign any document of any kind from them! You should not have to pay large fees  to get assistance avoiding foreclosure on your Raleigh, NC home.

Number seven, contact FHA for help.
Here are some helpful links to contact FHA and to get additional help to avoid foreclosure on your Raleigh, NC Home:

http://www.fha.gov/foreclosure/index.cfm    This page is excellent and it was a major source for these recent Raleigh Residential Real Estate blogs. 
HUD-approved housing counseling agencies – this link will allow you to search by state.
 
For consumer debt advice, contact http://www.debtadvice.org/

As always, if the Poling Team can help in any way, don’t hesitate to contact us. We’re also happy to give you a free no obligation market analysis of what your home is currently worth, just click here: What’s My Home’s Value?
 

Yesterday I discussed 3 Tips on How to Avoid Foreclosure on your Raleigh, NC Home
1. Don’t ignore the issue
2. As soon as you have a problem paying, give your lender a call..
3. Respond to all mail from your lender.

The next tip is to Know Your Rights. The first place to look is the loan papers you received at the time you purchased your home. Yes, you may have to dig for them, but you may already have some options available.

Next spend some time to learn about foreclosure laws in North Carolina or the state where you have the home or second home.

One place to look is the government website for the Department of Housing and Urban Development – HUD  Avoiding Foreclosure: North Carolina
Another website that has a good overview of NC Foreclosure law is stopforeclosure.com Here’s a link: North Carolina Foreclosure Law Summary

As always, if the Poling Team can help in any way, don’t hesitate to contact us. We’re also happy to give you a free no obligation market analysis of what your home is currently worth, just click here: What’s My Home’s Value?

 

There has been a lot of news regarding the state of the lending industry in recent days I thought it might be helpful if I shared the definition of one of the lesser known mortgage industry terms.

A Subprime Loan is one that is made to a borrower who has a lower credit rating. The poor credit rating may not be the result of a bankruptcy, but may be the result of regularly not paying bills on time, especially when they are late by 60 – 90 days.

A credit score below 620 will typically put one into the subprime loan category. However, other factors do enter the picture. Things like the purpose of the loan (is it for a primary residence or an investment property), the amount of downpayment, the debit to income ratio and the ability to document income are all factors that a lender will consider when deciding to make a loan.

A subprime loan normally will be at a higher interest due to the higher risk that is being assumed by the lender.

We have definitions of other real estate and mortgage industry terms on our website at  www.PolingTeam.com  click on the Real Estate Glossary link at the bottom left of the left side navigation or click here Real Estate Glossary

 
 

Thinking of buying a new home in the Cary, Apex, Knightdale or North Raleigh, NC or any other areas of the Triangle? Should you buy that home now or continue renting?

There are many benefits to home ownership like peace of mind and a feeling of permanence. Home owners can change the color of their bedroom or family room walls or fix a draft without asking permission.  Home owners can decide to have a pet or plant a garden in the back yard and not have to ask for the go-ahead from the landlord.  They do not face the possibility of having to move away, because the landlord decided to raise the rent.

However, it is important to do an analysis of the major costs and benefits of owning and renting, including tax breaks.  You will want to consider costs for home insurance, major repairs, property taxes and mortgage payment.  Tax deductions are an important portion of the analysis, but they should not be the only reason.

We have a link to a calculator to help you make the decision on our website under Buyer Resources or you can go directly to the Ginnie Mae page at: Your Path to Homeownership.

See our Featured Property at  http://www.2004monthaven.com/ or go to www.PolingTeam.com .
 

The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at 5.25% on Wednesday and acknowledged the economy was slowing.  This is the overnight bank rate that affects the rates of credit cards, auto loans and home equity loans.

Some see this as a sign the central bank may not need to raise rates further anytime soon. Some experts are projecting that with the housing market slowing and inflation steady or declining the Fed may start lowering rates as soon as next year.

According to Inman News, “The 30-year fixed-rate average sank to 5.89 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate declined to 5.59 percent. The 1-year adjustable was up at 5.35 percent.”

Want daily access to more real estate news? The Poling Team has two daily real estate news feeds on our website, click: Real Estate News Feeds

 

Inman News reported yesterday that overnight mortgage rates were steady with 30-year fixed rate at 6.07%; 10-year Treasury yield at 4.93%. One of our recommended Raleigh residential real estate lenders reports weekend mortgage rates on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage at 6.25% with no origination fee or 6.0% with 1 point.

So if you are thinking of purchasing a Raleigh, NC home, good rates are still available. Or if you are considering a re-finance of your home and if your current interest rate is about a half a point or more higher than the above figures, call us and we will be happy to recommend a lender with integrity who will make the process easy for you.

Give Art  a call on our toll free number at (888) 221-5940 to hear about our homes for sale and lots of free information or to be connected directly to us.

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Yesterday in my blog, I covered this topic and promised I would follow up with what the Fed actually did on Tuesday of this week (today). We’ll this time the prognosticators were correct in that the Fed did not raise rates as it has done 17 times over the last years. The federal funds rate is currently at 5.25 % which is up from a low of 1.25%.

This means it is a good time to go ahead and make an offer to purchase a home or consider a re-finance on your home if your current interest rate is about a half a point or more higher than the above figures. If you are interested, we can recommend some very good and helpful lenders.

Give us a call on our toll free number at (888) 221-5940 to hear about our homes for sale and lots of free information or to be connected directly to us.

View our Featured Raleigh, NC Homes