Jun 29, 2011

MBA: Small Co. Profits Down

According to a report in National mortgage news,

WASHINGTON—Small mortgage banking companies got crushed in the first quarter between falling loan volumes and rising expenses.

Profits per loan dropped 66% as the tail end of the fourth-quarter refinancing boom came to an abrupt end in late January and managers rushed to cut payroll and other expenses.

Average per-loan profit was $346 in the first quarter, according to a survey by the Mortgage Bankers Association, down from a $1,082 profit in the fourth quarter and $608 in the 2010 first quarter.

Meanwhile, expenses per loan rose from $4,930 in the fourth quarter to $5,837—which ate into first-quarter profits, according to Marina Walsh, MBA’s associate vice president of industry analysis.

The survey found 63% of the 329 respondent firms posted pretax profits for the first quarter, compared to 84% in the prior quarter.

It is not unusual for profits to take a hit at the end of the refinancing boom.

However, it appears this downturn in profitability was more severe due to regulatory costs associated with loan officer compensation and overtime rules.

Walsh pointed out that the first quarter of 2010 had a lot of similarities to the first quarter of this year. Loan production was nearly the same at $157,800 with refinancing volume was at 50%, compared with 44% in the first quarter of 2010.

Read more just Visit - http://www.originationnews.com/on_features/small-co-profits-down-1025445-1.html

Jun 25, 2011

Florida: Sales Up, Prices Down

According to a report in National mortgage news,

Florida saw a 3% increase in single-family existing home sales on a year-over-year basis in May, but the median sales price fell by 5%, according to the state's Realtor group.

There were 17,228 single-family sales statewide in May, up from 16,790 one year prior. Sales in the Miami area were up 20%, year-over-year. The markets with the largest amount of sales, Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater with 2,749, and Orlando, with 2,476, were down 6% and 5% respectively when compared with May 2010.

Florida's Realtors noted that the $135,500 median sales price for a single-family home was up nearly 3% over April. The Fort Myers-Cape Coral area had a 19% increase in median price when compared with May 2010, while the Panhandle metro areas of Fort Walton Beach and Pensacola were up 5% and 1% respectively.

But the median price did not go up all across the Panhandle as Panama City was off by 14%. Other areas with a large drop in median price include Gainesville, down 18%, as well as Fort Lauderdale and Ocala, each off by 17%.

Existing condominium sales in Florida increased by 17% over May 2010 to 8,338 from 7,104 and the statewide median sales price increased over the same time frame by 2% to $98,200.

In Miami, condo sales were up by 46%, and the 1,420 units sold during the month topped the 875 single family homes sold there. There were also more condos sold in the Fort Lauderdale area than single-family homes, 1,537 compared with 1,142.


Read more Visit - http://www.nationalmortgagenews.com/dailybriefing/2010_372/fla-sales-up-prices-down-1025335-1.html?ET=nationalmortgage:e1421:92746a:&st=email&utm_source=editorial&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=NMN_Daily_Briefing_062111

Jun 22, 2011

Not Much Relief for California Home Sales, Prices — Except San Francisco

According to a report in National mortgage news,

Home sales in the Golden State fell 6% in May from the prior month with the California Association of Realtors blaming tightened financing conditions and the weak economy for the decline.

According to figures compiled by the trade group, median home prices fell roughly 1% on a sequential basis to $291,790, but were down 11% compared to May 2010.

"Market demand has been sluggish as would-be home buyers remain concerned about the direction of the economy," said CAR president Beth Peerce. "They may also be weary of delays in the buying process and difficulty in getting a home loan."

The trade group chief also blamed a larger inventory of distressed properties sitting on the market for the sluggish sales pace and weak prices.

The San Francisco Bay area, however, bucked the trend, with values rising 4% between April and May. The areas with the biggest price gains include: Napa (up 23%), San Mateo (+13%), and Marin (+11%).

DataQuick of San Diego issued its own results for May sales in the Bay Area, finding that the median price paid for all new and resale properties (including condos) was $372,000, up 3% from April but down 9% from May 2010. It was the largest year-over-year drop in the median scale since August 2009, when it fell 20%.

"Given the sluggish start to this spring's home-buying season, with sales 20% to 30% below average, it's no surprise we're logging sharper declines from 2010," said DataQuick president John Walsh. "Sales got a big shot in the arm a year ago, when people rushed to take advantage of expiring homebuyer tax credits. Today the market must stand on its own, and it's having a hard time doing that in the absence of stronger job growth and consumer confidence."

Read more - http://www.nationalmortgagenews.com/dailybriefing/2010_369/california-home-sales-1025258-1.html?ET=nationalmortgage:e1402:92746a:&st=email&utm_source=editorial&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=NMN_Daily_Briefing_061611

Jun 17, 2011

Rates Hold Steady After Weeks of Declines

According to the National Mortgage News says,

The average rate for a 30-year FRM inched up one basis point to 4.5% after eight weeks of consecutive declines, according to Freddie Mac's closely watched survey.

In general, rates across most product types remained stable for the period ending June 16.

"After two months of fixed mortgage rate declines, and hitting new year-to-date lows along the way, rates held mostly steady this week," a Freddie Mac spokesperson told National Mortgage News.

On average, 15-year FRMs continued to inch downward, ending the week at 3.67%, a decline of one basis point. Treasury-indexed hybrid ARMs were at 3.27%, with one-year Treasury ARMs ending at 2.97%, up two basis points from the previous week.

Freddie chief economist and vice president Frank Nothaft said the mixed rates reflect slight increases in inflation indicators that were close to consensus, specifically a 0.2% increase in the core producer price index and a 0.3% jump in the producer price index. These increases were mostly "shrugged off" by the market, Freddie said.

In general, all rates remained lower than year ago levels.

Read more visit - http://www.nationalmortgagenews.com/dailybriefing/2010_369/freddie-mac-rates-1025263-1.html?ET=nationalmortgage:e1402:92746a:&st=email&utm_source=editorial&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=NMN_Daily_Briefing_061611

Jun 10, 2011

Housing at a 'Tipping Point' just take a look.

Home price expert Robert Shiller says,

The nation should not have been surprised by the recent “double-dip” in home values, but said he’s uncertain whether it is the start of a longer term slide in prices.

Shiller told attendees at a Standard & Poor’s housing conference in New York there has been “too much attention” on the double dip, noting that he had said for several months the market was on the verge of one.

He predicted there could be another dip in the S&P’s Case-Shiller 10-city index going forward, but also suggested that the market could turn up again in the summer months.

In terms of whether there is another definitive downtrend trend coming, Shiller said he considers the market at a “tipping point” and “not quite there yet.” Another month of data will make it clearer as to whether there are more recessionary pressures, he said.

During a question and answer session, when asked about future trends in home prices, he reiterated a past assertion that there could be another 10%-25% decline in real home prices over the next five years.

Read more just visit - http://www.nationalmortgagenews.com/dailybriefing/2010_364/housing-tipping-point-1025142-1.html?ET=nationalmortgage:e1373:92746a:&st=email&utm_source=editorial&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=NMN_Daily_Briefing_060911

Jun 6, 2011

Questions to Expect From Mortgage Lenders, Know what to expect before you apply.

According to a report in realtor,

Your mortgage lender will want to know a lot about you before approving your loan application, and justifiably so; they and their underwriters want to be assured that you meet their minimum level of creditworthiness before lending you money.

Areas of questioning : -

Here are the general areas of questioning you can expect from a lender:
1. Employment and income
2. Outstanding debts
3. Cash reserves and assets
4. Down payment
5. Loan purpose
6. Property use
7. Property type

Employment and income : -

Where do you work?
How much do you make?
How long have you been at your job?
How is your income derived -- steady salary or irregular income? If it's the latter, you may need to provide more details to obtain a favorable interest rate.

Outstanding debts : -

What recurring debts do you have?
How much do you pay a month for auto loans?
Credit cards? How much of your monthly pretax income do these debts consume?
Cash reserves and assets
How much money do you have in the bank?
How much will be left after you pay your down payment and closing costs?

Down payment : -

How much money are you putting down?
Is this your own money?
If not, is it a gift from your parents?
A nonprofit agency grant?

Loan purpose : -

Is this mortgage for a home buy or refinance?
If it's a refinance, do you want to take cash out at closing to pay off other debts? If so, how much?

Property use : -

Do you plan to live in the house?
Is it investment property?

Property type : -

A condominium?
A duplex?

The following responses tend to work in your favor:

Steady employment (two or more years) with the same employer or in same line of work.
Low debt: no recent major buys (such as automobiles) and a debt-to-income ratio of 36 percent or less.
Loan is for straight home purchase (or rate-and-term refinance).
Property is detached single-family home to be used as primary residence.
Down payment of at least 5 percent of sales price with your own money.
You'll have at least two months' worth of mortgage payments in the bank after closing.

These responses tend to work against you:

Self-employed or contract worker.
High debt: credit cards maxed out, total debt-to-income ratio more than 36 percent.
Property is a duplex or condominium, to be used as a vacation home or rental.
No cash left after home buy and closing costs.
Down payment is 3 percent or less of buy price and money is borrowed.

Read more visit : - http://www.realtor.com/home-finance/pre-funding-closing/questions-from-mortgage-lenders.aspx