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 FED HOLDS FEDERAL FUNDS RATE AT 5.25 PERCENT
Mar. 2007
The Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee today reported that moderate economic growth is likely in the coming months, despite ongoing concerns about core inflation. The Committee also announced its decision to keep the target for the federal funds rate at 5.25 percent, where is has stood since June 2006. The federal funds target rate is the interest rate charged by banks when they borrow funds "overnight" from each other.
In a prepared statement, the Fed acknowledged mixed economic indicators in recent months, including ongoing adjustments in the housing market. Should inflation fail to moderate as expected, the Committee may raise the Fed Funds rate as necessary.
AMERICANS VIEW HOUSING AS A STRONG INVESTMENT
Nov. 2006
As the housing market continues to stabilize, homeowners across the country rate their homes as their most valuable investment, according to a recent study conducted on behalf of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). Nearly seven of 10 homeowners list their home as their top investment, while 11 percent rate 401(k) and other retirement accounts as their best investment.
Eighty-one percent of homeowners also remain confident that the value of their home will increase during the next five years, while 13 percent felt their home value will decline. "We are in the midst of an inevitable adjustment following the housing boom of 2004-2005 when housing market activity soared to unsustainable levels," said NAHB Chief Economist David Seiders. "Housing demand should stabilize in short order and the downward adjustment to housing production should run its course by mid-2007. The market that emerges from this correction will display good balance between supply and demand and move to a healthy and sustainable trend based on solid underlying fundamentals."
The survey of 2,000 households, including more than 1,750 registered voters, was conducted by RT Strategies between Oct. 26-29.
SIX CALIFORNIA CITIES LISTED AMONG AMERICA'S 25 SAFEST
Nov. 2006
Six cities in the state of California -- more than any other state -- are among the top 25 safest cities in America, according to the 13th annual Safest City Award. California's "safest" cities are Mission Viejo (#3), Irvine (#7), Thousand Oaks (#11), Lake Forest (#15), Simi Valley (#17), and Chino Hills (#21). Brick, NJ, was named "America's Safest City."
The Safest City Award is based on a city's rate for six basic crime categories: murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor vehicle theft. All cities with populations of 75,000 or more that reported crime data to the FBI for the six crime categories were included in the rankings. In this year's survey, 371 cities were considered for the award.
Mortgage Rates are Dropping
Oct. 5, 2006
T oday may be the perfect time to consider the purchase of that dream home you have always wanted. Rates for 30-year fixed mortgages have dropped in 9 out of the last 10 weeks. That could save you more than $1,500 dollars a year depending on your loan amount.( 1) And, with more available properties on the market, finding just the right home has never been easier. Opportunity is knocking at your next front door
THE BUSINESS OF REAL ESTATE
(1) Based on a 30-year mortgage of $400,000 with a fixed rate of 6.30%
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HUD RAISES REAL ESTATE LOAN LIMITS BY 15 PERCENT
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has increased its single-family home mortgage limits to $200,160 in standard areas and $362,790 in high-cost areas, the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced earlier this week. Adjusted annually to account for rising home prices, the FHA loan limits are tied to the conforming loan limits set by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The 2006 loan limits, which took effect Jan. 1, 2006, are more than 15 percent higher than last year's limits.
TOTAL CONSTRUCTION SPENDING EXCEEDS $1 TRILLION IN 2005
The annual pace of construction spending topped $1 trillion for the 17th consecutive month in November 2005, rising 7.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.15 trillion, according to a recent report by the U.S. Census Bureau. Construction spending totaled $1.03 trillion during the first 11 months of 2005, up 9 percent over construction spending during the same period in 2004. The annual pace of total construction spending has remained above $1 trillion since July 2004.
Spending on residential construction in November 2005 increased 9.5 percent over the previous year to reach a rate of $648.4 billion. The value of nonresidential construction put into place in November rose 5.7 percent to a rate of $498 billion, according to the report.
RATE OF CONSTRUCTION SPENDING NEARS $1.2 TRILLION 2006
The annual pace of construction spending topped $1 trillion for the 20th consecutive month in February 2006, rising 7.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.19 trillion, according to a recent report by the U.S. Census Bureau. Construction spending totaled $161.5 billion during the first two months of 2006, up 8.5 percent over construction spending during the same period in 2005. The annual pace of total construction spending has remained above $1 trillion since July 2004.
Spending on residential construction in February 2006 increased 7 percent over the previous year to reach a rate of $672.4 billion. The value of nonresidential construction activity in February rose 7.9 percent to a rate of $513 billion, according to the report.
2005 CALIFORNIA HOUSING MARKET ECLIPSES PREVIOUS RECORDS
The 2005 California residential real estate market will be one for the record books, eclipsing the annual sales and median home price records set in 2004, according to C.A.R. Sales of detached, existing single-family homes are expected to reach 635,000 for 2005, an increase of 1.8 percent over 2004's record sales of 624,700. The annual median price of a single-family home in California, which crossed the $500,000 threshold for the first time in April 2005, is expected to reach $523,150 for 2005 when year-end data are analyzed.
With home prices reaching record levels, more homebuyers extended themselves financially last year by utilizing alternative loan products. The share of homebuyers who used adjustable-rate and hybrid loans increased from 11 percent in 2003 to 43 percent in 2005, while the share of fixed-rate loans dropped from 89 percent in 2003 to 57 percent in 2005. The last time more than 40 percent of homebuyers used adjustable-rate loans was in 1994.
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CALIFORNIA FAST FACTS |
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Sept. 2006
| Calif. median home price - September 06: $553,050 (Source: C.A.R.) |
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Calif. highest median home price by C.A.R. region September 06:
Santa Barbara So. Coast $1,025,000 (Source: C.A.R.) |
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Calif. lowest median home price by C.A.R. region September 06:
High Desert $329,040 (Source: C.A.R.) |
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Calif. First-time Buyer Affordability Index - Second Quarter 06:
23 percent (Source: C.A.R.) |
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Mortgage rates - week ending 11/22:
30-yr. fixed: 6.18%; Fees/points: 0.5%
15-yr. fixed: 5.91%; Fees/points: 0.5%
1-yr. adjustable: 5.49%; Fees/points: 0.6%
(Source: Freddie Mac) |
Dec. 2005 |
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| Calif. median home price - Dec. 05: $548,430 (Source: C.A.R.) |
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| Calif. affordability index - Dec. 05: 14 percent (Source: C.A.R.) |
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Calif. highest median home price by C.A.R. region Dec. 05:
Santa Barbara So. Coast $1,300,000 (Source: C.A.R.) |
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Calif. lowest median home price by C.A.R. region Dec. 05:
High Desert $320,490 (Source: C.A.R.) |
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Mortgage rates - week ending 2/16:
30-yr. fixed: 6.28%; Fees/points: 0.5%
15-yr. fixed: 5.91%; Fees/points: 0.5%
1-yr. adjustable: 5.36%; Fees/points: 0.7%
(Source: Freddie Mac) |
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