Falling Mortgage Rates Spark More Refinances – The Mortgage Bankers Association reported on Wednesday that total mortgage application volume, which includes refinancings and home purchases, rose 2.8 percent last week on a seasonally adjusted basis, motivating more homeowners to take advantage of the savings. “Over the last two weeks, refinance applications have increased 13 percent, and the average loan size increased to its largest since September 2016. This reflects the tendency for jumbo borrowers to be more sensitive to rates than those with smaller loan balances,” said MBA economist Joel Kan.
Boomers Are Getting Stuck With a McMansion – According to realtor.com® some baby boomers are having a tough time selling their McMansions, even though it may be a seller’s market. That’s because many younger buyers are showing a preference instead for smaller, more modern homes with open floor plans. Younger and older generations seem to both desire smaller homes in more urban, walkable suburbs and cities, realtor.com® reports. “What you have is everyone chasing the same type of home,” says Rick Palacious, director of research at John Burns Real Estate Consulting. “More and more buyers of all ages want to avoid having to deal with a huge yard and all the upkeep and the costs to maintain a larger home.”
Homeownership is a High Priority – According to a new survey released by the National Association of Home Builders of more than 11,300 registered voters, more than two-thirds of Americans believe that owning a home is an essential part of the American dream. “Americans continue to place a high priority on homeownership and work hard to achieve this goal for their families,” says NAHB Chairman Granger MacDonald.
House Votes to Repeal Key Aspects of Dodd-Frank – The House voted last week to roll back many of the banking rules under the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010, which increased regulatory oversight of financial institutions. Some lawmakers argue the sweeping legislation had been preventing a true recovery from happening since the Great Recession and has made getting a mortgage too tough. Under the new bill, known as the Financial CHOICE Act, big banks would face less scrutiny and many of the regulatory powers of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, an agency started under Dodd-Frank, would be stripped away.
