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Sat May 25, 2013
The price of a new single-family home soared to a record high in April as sales jumped 2.3 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 454,000, the Census Bureau and HUD reported Thursday. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected April sales to increase to 425,000 from March’s originally reported 417,000. March sales were revised to 444,000. The median price of a new home, according to the Census/HUD report, soared $20,900 (8.3 percent) in April to $271,600, the highest price on record.
The number of homeowners underwater on their mortgages continued to fall in Q1, but millions still lack enough equity to afford to move, Zillow revealed in its first-quarter Negative Equity Report. According to the report, the national negative equity rate was 25.4 percent in the last quarter compared to 27.5 percent at the end of 2012. However, when including homeowners with less than 20 percent home equity, the “effective” negative equity rate is 43.6 percent, or 22.3 million homeowners.
The GSE's portfolio grew in April, but at a clipped pace compared to March Read More
According to the Redfin's Fastest Real Estate Markets Report, the number of homes under contract within two weeks of debut increased 3 percent month-over-month and 39 percent year-over-year in April. read more
Fixed mortgage rates trended higher for the third consecutive week, according to reports from Freddie Mac and Bankrate.com. read more
Mortech, headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska, rolled out additional features to its Connect Plus borrower contact and management tool. read more
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