Nearly half of U.S. households who heat their homes with natural gas can expect higher bills this winter—an average of 30% higher compared to last year, the Energy Information Administration warns.It could be even higher: If the winter is 10% colder than average, homeowners can expect heating bills that top 50% higher than a year ago.Even if the winter is 10% warmer than average, heating bills are still expected to be 22% higher than last year.
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose sharply this week, averaging 3.05%. That marks the highest average since April, according to Freddie Mac’s mortgage market survey.“As inflationary pressure builds due to the ongoing pandemic and tightening monetary policy, we expect rates to continue a modest upswing,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “Historically speaking, rates are still low, but many potential home buyers are
To keep pace with higher prices, the Federal Housing Finance Agency announced Wednesday that its 2022 multifamily loan purchase caps for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will rise to $78 billion for each of the government-sponsored enterprises. That is a combined total of $156 billion to support the multifamily market next year.The 2022 caps, based on the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s projections for overall growth in the multifamily originations
Demand is surging for rental units and that is pushing up prices. The amount homeowners could receive from renting their home increased by 0.4%, which may seem small but is the largest one-month increase since 2006, according to the latest Consumer Price Index. Rents of primary residences jumped by 0.5%, the largest one-month increase since 2001.“This might just be an overshoot after a couple of relatively modest increases, but we can’t rule
While U.S. foreclosure starts rose 67% in September compared with a year ago, they remain well below historic levels. The significant jump has to be seen in context: It is comparing the rate of foreclosure starts now to those of a year ago, when pandemic-led moratoriums were preventing foreclosures from moving forward.And the increase isn't likely to lead to a glut of homes on the market, says National Association of
Home buyers are paying more in closing costs, but it’s mostly because they’re paying more to buy a home. Lenders are actually holding their closing costs down, a new report shows.National average closing costs for single-family properties was $6,837 including taxes, and $3,836 excluding taxes, for the first half of 2021, according to ClosingCorp, a residential real estate closing data firm. Closing costs were up 12.3% and 10.5%, respectively,
Loan originations for jumbo residential mortgages are set to hit a level that has not been seen since the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis, Bank of America researchers posted in a weekly report. Skyrocketing home prices are forcing home buyers to borrow more to afford the rising costs.Mortgage loans that exceed conforming loan limits set by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are estimated to reach $550 billion this year, Bank of America estimates. A l
Homebuyers are bidding up home prices as they compete for homes. But appraisals don’t always agree with the offer the seller finally accepts. Some homes are appraised below the agreed-upon sales price, which could upend a deal.Twenty-three percent of contracts were delayed due to appraisal issues, according to the latest REALTORS® Confidence Index Survey, based on a survey of real estate professionals’ transactions. About 12% of transactions
Profits are shrinking for home flippers as high home prices and construction costs dig into flippers’ income. But home flipping is still increasing, according to data from realtor.com®.“There is opportunity, but you’ve really got to be smart in where you purchase and know that market,” Charles Tassell, CEO of the National Real Estate Investors Association, told realtor.com®. “Finding the right spot is the hard part right now.” A hom
Home buyers have another shot at snagging mortgage rates under 3% this week. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 2.99%, defying expectations that below 3% rates were now gone.The Federal Reserve recently warned that it will soon begin tapering its bond purchases, which is expected to move rates up. The National Association of REALTORS® is predicting that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage will average 3.5% by mid-2022.But over recent weeks
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