If You Can Test Drive a Car, Why Not a House?
A handful of
developers, listing agents and homeowners say they are willing to let
potential buyers hang out with the neighbors, have dinner in the kitchen
or even spend a night or two in a home before making a final decision.
Raquel
Gillett, an officer at a bank in Irvine, Calif., decided to test the
waters before buying a Mediterranean-style home for more than $700,000
in Toll Brothers’ master-planned Parkview community in October. Ms.
Gillet took advantage of the sales manager’s offer to introduce
prospective buyers to residents for an inside view of what it was like
to live there. She attended a pool party where she met her
potential neighbors. “I think the most important thing to me was getting
to know them,” she says. “It gave us a comfort level with each other
when we were going to be on the same block.” For individual homes on the market, the opportunity to test out a home or a neighborhood in advance remains rare, Read more.
Shrinking Inventory May Raise Prices Again
Affordability Still Plagues Many Households: “Only by adding more new 
supply, via housing starts, can home prices be tamed,” he says. Even as Mortgage Rates Fall Again: Average
fixed-rate mortgages once again fell back to near 20-month lows. After
rising slightly last week, mortgage rates reversed course this week, sending
borrowing costs lower and allowing home buyers and refinancers to lock
in rates that haven’t been this low since May 23, 2013. Home prices have jumped 20 percent over the last two years, See Interest Rates Increase Projection.
Down Payment Programs Nationwide
87% of Homes Qualify for Down Payment Aid: Many of these programs can 
be combined with other programs too, such as VA and FHA home loans. More
prospective home buyers would likely qualify for down payment
assistance than they think. Indeed, more than 68 million single-family
and condo households – would qualify for a down payment program
available in the county where they are located, according to a new study
by Down Payment Resource. “Many
home buyers, especially Millennials, haven’t fully investigated their
home financing options because they are pessimistic about qualifying for
a mortgage.” Read more.
Market is Primed for First-Time Buyers, Sellers
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: 2015 is the year of the millennial when it 
comes
to real estate. Millennials are at a critical demographic tipping point
where their sheer numbers will naturally drive demand for more home
sales. We’re back to a normal and upward trajectory for housing prices, and there’s little risk of prices declining because inventories are very low. I’m actually more worried about listings and new home construction not keeping up with the demand.
Sellers should also be encouraged—especially if they’re sitting in affordable homes waiting for a long-overdue upgrade.
With recent clarification of mortgage standards, new low-down-payment
programs, and lower FHA insurance premiums, access to credit should
improve, read more.
Rising Rents Prompting Millennials Toward Home Ownership
Federal Housing Administration’s plan to reduce annual 
mortgage insurance premiums likely will have a positive impact on springing first-time buyers into action. FHA, which offers loans with down payments as low as 3.5 percent, decreased its insurance premiums on
Jan. 26 from 1.35 percent to 0.85 percent. Young couples and singles
are making a belated entry into the home-buying market, confirms several
recent housing reports. Rising
rents are prompting more millennials to move toward home ownership,
along with an extra push from mortgage rates being in the mid-3 percent
range,read more.
FHA Fee Cuts to Boost Home Sales
What
type of impact will the Federal Housing Administration’s move to lower
insurance premiums really have on the housing market? Housing experts are making predictions that the lower fees could translate into thousands of new home sales this year and next.
The Federal Housing Administration recently reduced its annual mortgage insurance premiums from 1.35 percent to 0.85 percent. According to estimates by the National Association of REALTORS®, the
lower rates could result in big savings over time for borrowers. For
example, a borrower with a $200,000 mortgage could unlock a savings of
nearly $1,000 over the first year. By year five, the borrower may have saved nearly $4,800, and over 30 years potentially about an $18,000 savings, read more.
Builders Increase Spec-Home for Spring
In anticipation of a hot spring-buying season, homebuilders are increasing 
their building of speculative homes, those built without a buyer in place.
Builders
had 218,000 homes listed for sale that were either under construction
or completed at the end of December – that’s a 17.2 percent increase
from a year earlier, the Commerce Department reported this week. That
also marks the highest December total of spec homes since 2009. Overall, builders appear to be the most optimistic in the West, with sentiment there rising four points in January to 66, read more.
