Mortgage Rates for Massachusetts at All-Time Lows...Again!

Mortgage Rates are at all-time lows right now; 30 year fixed, 20 year fixed, 15 year fixed and even Jumbo Rates, and they're showing no signs of rising! I don’t see them going any lower, but staying down at these levels for a while.

What’s moving Mortgage Rates? No one really knows right now but this is usually what happens, bonds go up, stocks go down.  Stocks go up, bonds go down. It’s really pretty easy to understand. However this mortgage market that we are in  is no where near normal.  In fact, it’s the total opposite, it’s like nothing we’ve ever experienced.

Refinance loans account for the majority of all present loan production, but home buyers are getting these incredible rates, too! What I don't understand is why there are not more home buyers placing offers, and why some properties just languish on the market when they are priced competitively. I have to think that the home buying consumer just does not have enough confidence in the overall economic outlook yet. I'm just afraid these same people may miss out on a rare real estate buying opportunity...low home prices and rock bottom mortgage interest rates.

30 year fixed mortgage rates remain in the 4.375% to 4.625% range.  The 30 year fixed rate mortgage is 4.375% for a qualified borrower.

Closing Deadline Extended for Tax Credit

July 1, 2010 - Last night, Congress passed an extension of the closing deadline for the Homebuyer Tax Credit, the Homebuyer Assistance and Improvement Act (H.R. 5623). The extension applies only to transactions that have ratified contracts in place as of April 30, 2010, that have not yet closed. The legislation is designed to create a seamless extension; the new closing deadline for eligible transactions is now September 30, 2010. There will be no gap between June 30 and the date the President signs the bill into law. Extending the tax credit closing deadline will help provide additional stability to real estate markets across the nation.
Our Government Affairs team worked closely with Congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle to enact this important legislation.
NAR is still working on restoring the 502 single-family rural housing loan guarantee program. Language is included in H.R. 4899, the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations bill, that is currently in conference between the House and Senate.  We expect the House to pass that bill shortly and are hopeful the Senate will do the same when they return the week of July 12. When that bill passes, the program will be restored through the end of the fiscal year.



Additionally, the Senate passed the National Flood Insurance Program Extension Act of 2010 (H.R. 5569), an extension of the National Flood Insurance Program until September 30, 2010. This will allow transactions to move forward. The bill is retroactive and covers the lapse period from June 1, 2010, to the date of enactment of the extension. The National Association of REALTORS (NAR) members sent more than 250,000 letters to Members of Congress encouraging them to extend the program.

For additional information on the tax credit extension, the flood insurance program and rural housing, please visit www.realtor.org/government_affairs

If You Missed Out on the Tax Credit - Don't Complain!

To all of you who are complaining that you don't qualify because you haven't place a home under contract yet or went under contract after April 30, 2010:

You have had over 2 years to take advantage of the tax credit. The 1st deadline was in 2008, then 2009 and finally April 30, 2010. We all knew that it wouldn't be extended forever. There were many, many great bargains on homes out there, and we had dozens and dozens of clients buy them and take advantage of the credit. We had many other buyers who didn't take advantage of it because they procrastinated too long.

But as the final April 30th deadline approached, I told my buyers that it made no sense to buy a property they weren't happy with just for the sake of getting the tax credit. By waiting they have the opportunity to purchase the home they really want and, with all the short sale/bank owned properties on the market, save much more than the $8,000 they would have received.

Yes, the tax credit is over, but the savings are still here. Buyers are picking up short sale properties and with a little work they are getting instant equity.

Jim Armstrong

Home Buyer Seminar in Salem Massachusetts

Time is Running Out to Qualify for the $8,000 Tax Credit!

November 30th is approaching quickly, and that is the deadline to close on a home in order to qualify for the $8,000 first time home buyer tax credit. If the average timeline from the time you your offer on a home is accepted and the time you close is 5 weeks, that means you have less than 30 days to find a home that meets your needs and get it under contract.

We will be holding a seminar/workshop on buying a home on Wednesday, September 16th at the Seaport Credit Union in Salem MA and will be discussing the credit and how you can receive it. We will bring you right through the home buying process up to the closing. You will also hear from an attorney and a mortgage officer who will explain the legal and financial aspects of buying a home.

For more information, go to: Home Buyer Workshop