Zillow
By Ryan Schuette | 05/16/2012
A rash of new concerns in debt-saddled Europe drove investors to U.S. Treasury debt, keeping mortgage rates at all-time lows and leading mortgage application volume to tick up 9.2 percent. The Mortgage Bankers Association recorded an 8.7 percent increase in applications for the Market Composite Index on a seasonally unadjusted basis. Analysts credit an upset in Greek elections last week with the rush by investors to U.S. Treasury debt, with policymakers in the Mediterranean country likely seeing elections next week.
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By Ryan Schuette | 05/10/2012
Jittery investors retreated to U.S. Treasury debt this week after upsets in French and Greek elections, a movement that yet again drove mortgage rates to all-time lows. Freddie Mac found Thursday that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage broke records by falling to 3.83 percent, down from 3.84 percent last week. Finance Web site Bankrate.com, which releases a survey at the same as Freddie each week, found similar results, with the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage hitting 3.2 percent and the jumbo 30-year loan falling to 4.54 percent, both new lows.
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By Ryan Schuette | 05/08/2012
Interest rates for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages slid this week to 3.65 percent, a four-year low made feasible by turmoil in French and Greek elections, real estate Web site Zillow said Tuesday. The 30-year loan fell from 3.69 percent last week and represents the lowest recorded by Zillow since the Web site began tracking mortgage rates in April 2008. Interest rates for the 30-year also zigzagged across the country, falling most steeply in places like Colorado and Illinois. Rates for the 15-year fixed-rate loan averaged 2.91 percent, alongside 2.52 percent for 5-year and 1-year adjustable-rate mortgages.
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By Ryan Schuette | 05/01/2012
Mortgage rates remained near record lows across the country Tuesday. Real estate Web site Zillow reported that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage slid to 3.69 percent this week, down from 3.72 percent last week. The 15-year loan averaged 2.97 percent for Zillow, while rates for 5-year and 1-year adjustable-rate mortgages hovered around 2.62 percent. With the exception of New York, where interest rates gained by 12 basis points, mortgage rates zigzagged lower than the week before in states around the country.
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By Ryan Schuette | 04/10/2012
Mortgage rates fell to lows not seen in a month on the heels of an underwhelming jobs report and concerns that Spain may follow Greece into default-scenario territory. Real estate Web site Zillow found interest rates for the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage zigzagging across the country, just as it fell from 3.81 percent to 3.73 percent this week. Rates for the 15-year loan hovered near 2.95 percent, while those for 5-year and 1-year adjustable-rate mortgages slumped to 2.56 percent. The Labor Department flattened expectations by reporting that the economy added only 120,000 jobs in March.
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By Ryan Schuette | 04/04/2012
Weak economic news out of Europe and comments from the Federal Reserve chairman last week conspired to keep interest rates for mortgage loans near all-time lows – and flat – for another week. Real estate Web site Zillow found the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage hovering at 3.81 percent, down from 3.88 percent last week. The 15-year loan averaged 3.04 percent, even while the 5-year and 1-year adjustable-rate mortgages hit 2.57 percent. The Web site found mortgage rates zigzagging in states across with the union, with those in California and New York each falling furthest at a clip of 11 basis points.
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By Ryan Schuette | 03/27/2012
Mortgage rates continued to show signs of stability this week, with rates for the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage largely repeating a series of bumpy but steady fluctuations. Real estate Web site Zillow fielded 3.88 percent for the 30-year loan, nine basis points down from 3.97 percent last week after a back-and-forth between 3.89 percent and 3.98 percent. The company said that rates for the 15-year loan averaged 3.1 percent this week, with those for 5-year and 1-year adjustable-rate mortgages not far behind at 2.72 percent.
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By Ryan Schuette | 03/21/2012
Economists redrew their expectations for home prices for 2012, slashing forecasts from 0.2 percent to 0.7 percent. Real estate Web site Zillow.com partnered with Pulsenomics LLC to project prices in a Home Price Expectations Survey it released earlier Wednesday. More than 100 economists and real estate experts said in their survey responses, with the more optimistic saying that prices could lift 1.4 percent next year, down from 1.8 percent. Drawing on a Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller Index, Zillow projected that home prices would climb by 1.39 percent next year.
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By Abby Gregory | 03/15/2012
A new survey from Zillow, Inc., reveals that rental markets around the U.S. continue to grow. Citing declining home values, the company reported that 70 percent of markets nationwide saw an increase in rents during January. Statistics from Zillow's recent study showed that median rents moved forward by 3 percent on a year-over-year basis in January, and the findings also noted a correlating 4.6 percent drop in home pricing for the same period. January's Zillow Rent Index (ZRI) tallied year-over-year gains in 69.2 percent of all metropolitan areas covered within the report.
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By Carrie Bay | 03/13/2012
Economic releases in recent days have signaled positive movement, albeit gradual, toward a strengthening economy. The rosier outlook has led mortgage interest rates higher. The 30-year fixed-mortgage rate on Zillow Mortgage Marketplace came in at 3.74 percent, up five basis points from 3.69 percent at the same time last week. Rates for a 15-year fixed mortgage, as well as adjustable-rate mortgages, also rose. Experts say conditions are primed for mortgage rates to continue to rise in the coming weeks and months.
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