MLS Real Estate & Listings Blog

Long-term mortgage interest rates were unchanged Friday, and the
benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield fell to 3.44 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average stayed at 5.75 percent, and the
15-year fixed rate held at 5.27 percent. The 1-year adjustable rate, however, gained to 5.32 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield was down at 4.32 percent.

Rates and bonds are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.  more…

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Mortgage rates rose slightly this week, the lowest-fee 30-year from just below 6 percent to a hair above. Spreads still gape versus Treasurys, at 2.5 percent above the 10-year defying all of the Fed’s latest efforts. Five-year ARMs, both conforming and jumbo, are better in availability and rate, but both are scarcer and higher than in January.

The economy itself is in a curious place. This morning’s report of a half-percent gain in February personal income was head-scratching good news, not squaring with consumer confidence measures at 16-year lows, some components at 41-year all-time lows.  more…

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A report from The Conference Board this week suggests that improvement in the U.S. job market is unlikely before the third or fourth quarter of this year.

The organization’s Help-Wanted Advertising Index, a key economic indicator measuring the volume of job ads in major U.S. newspapers, dipped one point in February to 21, and is down nine points from the same time last year.

The Conference Board reported that just 31 percent of labor markets surveyed last month reported rising want-ad volume, down from 43 percent in January.  more…

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Single-family housing starts, as measured by building permits issued, plunged 59.8 percent in February compared to the same month last year, the California Building Industry Association trade group reported this week, and total housing starts dropped 27.9 percent.  more…

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Long-term mortgage interest rates were up Thursday, and the
benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield climbed to 3.53 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average rose to 5.75 percent, and the
15-year fixed rate gained to 5.27 percent. The 1-year adjustable rate, however, dropped to 5.3 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield was up at 4.39 percent.

Rates and bonds are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.  more…

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Long-term mortgage interest rates were lower Wednesday, and the
benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield sank to 3.46 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average dipped to 5.68 percent, and the
15-year fixed rate slipped to 5.2 percent. The 1-year adjustable rate, however, rose to 5.46 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield was up at 4.31 percent.

Rates and bonds are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.  more…

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Long-term mortgage interest rates were flat Tuesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield sank to 3.51 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average dipped to 5.72 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate held at 5.22 percent. The 1-year adjustable rate slipped to 5.41 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield was down to 4.3 percent.

Rates and bonds are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.  more…

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Consumer confidence took another hit in March, falling to a five-year low, as more Americans expect business conditions and the job market to worsen in the coming months, The Conference Board reported today.

The Consumer Confidence Index dropped to 64.5 this month from a reading of 76.4 in February, with the Expectations Index component plummeting to its lowest level since December 1973.  more…

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Long-term mortgage interest rates gained sharply Monday, and the
benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield grew to 3.56 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average climbed to 5.73 percent, and the
15-year fixed rate jumped to 5.22 percent. The 1-year adjustable rate rose to 5.45 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield gained to 4.37 percent.

Rates and bonds are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.  more…

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California home sales decreased 28.5 percent in February compared with the same period a year ago, while the median price of an existing home fell 26.2 percent, the California Association of Realtors reported today.  more…

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Sales of previously owned homes hit an adjusted annual rate of 5.03 million in February, which was down 23.8 percent compared to the same month last year but was up slightly from January 2008, ending a six-month slide, the National Association of Realtors reported today.  more…

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Long-term mortgage interest rates fell Thursday, and the
benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield dropped to 3.33 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average dipped to 5.62 percent, and the
15-year fixed rate sank to 5.08 percent. The 1-year adjustable rate rose to 5.53 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield slipped to 4.17 percent.

Rates and bonds are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.  more…

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A national real estate article published in a community newspaper in Elizabethtown, Ky., caught the eye and ire of several local real estate professionals, and brought home an age-old conflict between news coverage and industry interests.

The headline of the article, authored by Claes Bell, questioned, "Is this a good time to buy a home?"  more…

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Rising jobless claims and slumping home construction soured the economic outlook in February, as The Conference Board reported today that its U.S. leading index fell for the fifth straight month.  more…

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Long-term mortgage interest rates ended Wednesday mixed, and the
benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield dropped to 3.34 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average held steady at 5.66 percent, while the
15-year fixed rate gained to 5.09 percent. The 1-year adjustable rate rose to 5.42 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield slipped to 4.21 percent.

Rates and bonds are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.  more…

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Although February home sales across Southern California and the San Francisco Bay Area picked up from January, they posted huge declines from a year ago and median prices tumbled.

According to real estate information service DataQuick, home sales last month in the six-county Southern California region limped along at the slowest pace ever for a February — with just 10,777 new and resale houses and condos changing hands. That’s a 39 percent decrease from the 17,680 sales reported in February 2007, but an 8 percent jump from 9,983 sales in January 2008.  more…

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Long-term mortgage interest rates continued to fall Tuesday, and the
benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield climbed to 3.49 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average dropped to 5.66 percent, and the
15-year fixed rate fell to 5.04 percent. The 1-year adjustable rate, however, rose to 5.34 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield increased to 4.35 percent.

Rates and bonds are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.  more…

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The Federal Reserve today cut 75 basis points from two key short-term interest rates — a move that in less turbulent times would have been viewed as a drastic measure, but which fell short of some investors’ expectations for a full 1 percent cut.

The Fed’s actions fueled a stock market rally, but aren’t expected to have an impact on long-term interest rates like mortgages until investors who fund loans return to the secondary market where they are bought and sold.  more…

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* Nope, not an inch
* Yes, we'll take what we can get
* With all the crazy financial news lately, who knows anymore?

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The rate of single-family housing starts and single-family building permits authorized dropped for the 11th consecutive month in February, falling to the lowest level since January 1991, the U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development reported today.

The seasonally adjusted annual rate of single-family housing starts was 707,000 in February, down about 40.5 percent compared to February 2007, and the rate of single-family building-permit authorizations fell about 41.9 percent compared to February 2007. This rate is a projection of a monthly total over a 12-month period, adjusted to account for seasonal fluctuations in construction activity.  more…

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