Mortgage News

• Fed Buying Too Much MBS?

  We’ll have to get Barry on the show to go over this in more detail for sure! But there are concerns that the Fed is buying too much MBS. In today’s show we talk about what those concerns are. So tune in and let us know what your thoughts are on the whole matter. Hey […]

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• Second Homes, Widespread but Few in Number

  There were approximately 7.5 million second homes in the U.S. in 2018, the most recent year for which data is available. This is 5.5 percent of the nation's total housing stock. Na Zhao, writing in the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB's) Eye on Housing blog, says the largest share of these homes are in Florida with a total of 1.1 million homes, 14.5 percent of the country's total. The fewest homes, only 20,000, were in South Dakota NAHB defines a second home as one that qualify for the home mortgage interest deduction using the Census Bureau's 2018 American Community Survey (ACS). This does not include houses held primarily for investment or business purposes nor does it include homes under construction.

   

• Builder Confidence Sets a New Record Once Again

  For only the second time in its 35-year history, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) topped 80 this month. The first time was in September. The index, a measure of builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes increased two points to 85, breaking the previous high of 83 set last month.  "Traffic remains high and record-low interest rates are keeping demand strong as the concept of 'home' has taken on renewed importance for work, study and other purposes in the Covid era," said NAHB Chairman Chuck Fowke. "However, it is becoming increasingly challenging to build affordable homes as shortages of lots, labor, lumber and other key building materials are lengthening construction times."