Financial advice is rarely one-size-fits-all, but this interview with Suze Orman is worth a watch. In 5 minutes with NBC’s The Today Show, Ms. Orman covers a ton of relevant ground for homeowners and the public-at-large: Who should — and shouldn’t — be paying down their mortgage What backlash to expect from the Dow’s 40% [...]

After starting the week with a run lower toward 5 percent, mortgage rates have reversed course. It started mid-day Tuesday and the culprit is Basic Economics. Here’s why. Mortgage rates are based on the price of mortgage-backed bonds and — like most things — mortgage-backed bonds prices are based in Supply and Demand. When bond [...]

For May, the Case-Shiller Index showed home values up in 15 of its 20 tracked U.S. markets. It’s the first time in nearly 3 years that the index showed such strength and a signal that home prices may be turning higher for good. According to a Case-Shiller Index spokesperson, “this could be a signal that [...]

Once again, the housing market is showing that its worst days may be over. According to the Census Bureau, the number of new homes sold in June leapt by 11 percent from the month prior. It stands as the biggest one-month jump in 8 years. A “new home sale” is when a home in any [...]

Mortgage markets carved out a wide range last week, creating a mixed bag for mortgage rate shoppers. Rates were much improved on Monday and Tuesday, much worse on Wednesday and Thursday, and idle for most of Friday. Overall, mortgage rates improved slightly but don’t expect the volatility to subside. There is a ton of economic [...]

The national home supply is falling, down to its lowest levels since December 2008. In June, there was 9.4 months of supply, down from a year-ago level of 11.0 months. It’s one more sign that the housing market may be mending itself. Housing supply is an important metric because home values across every U.S. market [...]

Home values around the country appear to be leveling. The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s latest Home Price Index report shows values up by nearly 1 percent in May versus the month prior. Since peaking in April 2007, values remain off by 11 percent nationwide. The FHFA Home Price Index is an interesting metric. Different from [...]

Mortgage markets rallied Tuesday while Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke gave his semi-annual testimony to Congress. By the time the day was over, some conforming mortgage rates were down by as much as 0.250 percent. One of the leading causes for the market rally was Chairman Bernanke revealing an “exit strategy” from its massive market stimulus. [...]

Housing Starts soared in June, thumping analyst expectations for the second straight month. A “housing start” is a new home on which construction has started. Last month’s jump in single-family starts is the largest one-month jump since 2004. To Wall Street, June’s figures are the latest signal that the country’s housing markets may be on [...]

Mortgage markets had an awful week last week as a combination of strong economic data and stand-out earnings results led investors into more risky investments. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 7 percent. Mortgage rates, unfortunately, didn’t fare as well. As the first week since June in which mortgage rates rose, rates were up [...]