household budget

How November’s 533,000 Jobs Lost Is Helping Mortgage Rates Improve

December 5, 2008

According to the government, American businesses are cutting staff at an accelerated pace, most recently paring 533,000 jobs this past November. It’s the largest one-month decline since December 1974 and raises the year-to-date job losses to 1.9 million workers. However, there is a silver lining in the data for all Americans — both employed and […]

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Looking Back And Looking Ahead : November 17, 2008

November 17, 2008

In another week of up-and-down trading, mortgage rates ended the week slightly higher last week. Ping-pong action like this has defined mortgage markets lately. It’s increasingly common for rates to soar one day, and then come crashing down the next. In response to market volatility, mortgage lenders issued as many as 8 distinct rate sheets […]

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Weak Employment Data May Boost The Affordability Of Homes

November 15, 2008

On the first Friday of every month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its Non-Farm Payrolls report. More commonly, it’s called the “jobs report” and the October’s data is trending with the rest of 2008. After shedding another 240,000 jobs last month, the economy has now put 1.2 million Americans out of work this year […]

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See How Mortgage Rates Are Trending With Oil Prices

September 3, 2008

Mortgage rates are hugely important to household budgets. Lower mortgage rates free up household cash for spending and long- and short-term saving. Higher mortgage rates, of course, do the opposite. Unfortunately, it’s impossible to predict the future of mortgage rates with any bit of certainty.  This is because there are countless influences on mortgage markets, […]

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The “Sheep Effect” On Your Housing Payment

July 9, 2008

A noon-hour, mortgage-bond rally rendered homes more affordable for Americans Tuesday. It was the second straight day on which this happened. On both days, the action was swift. The speed at which Monday’s and Tuesday’s respective rallies tore through mortgage markets illustrates how deep the uncertainty that surrounds the U.S. economy really is. One reason […]

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Are Sub-Prime Mortgage Problems Finally On Their Way Out?

July 2, 2008

In the summer of 2005, sub-prime mortgage lending was at its peak.  Rates were relatively low and lending guidelines were relatively loose. At the time, the “standard” sub-prime mortgage product was the 3/27 ARM. The 3/27 had a few basic traits: A fixed, 3-year “starter rate” Every six months thereafter, the mortgage rate changed The […]

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Why It’s Good News For Home Buyers When Unemployment Rates Surge

June 6, 2008

On the first Friday of every month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its Non-Farm Payrolls report. More commonly called the “jobs report”, today’s 2-page analysis of May 2008 shows that the economy shed jobs and that unemployment surged. This is terrific news for home affordability. That may sound counter-intuitive, so let’s dig deeper into the […]

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Looking Back And Looking Ahead : May 19, 2008

May 19, 2008

Optimism ruled the markets last week — optimism about employment, optimism about housing, and optimism about inflation. Mortgage rates edged lower overall. Despite the positive sentiment from Wall Street, consumer confidence in the economy reached a 28-year low. This is a normal divergence because investors live in the “future” of markets while Americans live in the […]

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How The 84,000 Parts Of Inflation Impact Mortgage Rates

May 12, 2008

When the everyday “Cost of Living” increases, our dollars don’t go as far as they used to.  Economists call this inflation. One popular method of measuring inflation is to track prices for 84,000 individual items and lump them together into a “basket”.  If the overall price is higher, then the economy is experiencing inflation. If a […]

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The Right Question: “How Much Do I Want To Spend On Housing Each Month?”

March 6, 2008

One of the most popular questions that home buyers ask real estate and mortgage professionals is “How much home can I afford?” It’s a normal question to ask, but it’s not the most effective way to plan your finances. Banks will almost always approve you for a home loan in excess of your household budget. […]

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Have You Ever Wondered Where The Money Goes?

October 4, 2007

Where does your money go?  If you’re like most Americans, more than half of it goes towards housing and transportation alone. This is according to the Consumer Expenditure Survey performed by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The most recent study shows American household spending habits from 2005, but the percentages change little from one year […]

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How To Answer “How Much Home Can I Afford?”

March 15, 2007

Home shoppers know to consider the impact that a new home will have on their household budget and that is called keeping your eye on the ball. Unfortunately, most shoppers are keeping their eye on the wrong ball. The proper way to answer the “How Much Home Can I Afford” question is to think in […]

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Moving To A New Town Means Adjusting To A New Cost Of Living

March 13, 2007

For the budget-aware, buying a new home involves calculating how new PITI payments will impact the household budget. For in-town moves, the math is fairly simple — consider your existing budget and replace your old housing cost with your new housing cost. For non-local moves, however, the budgeting grows more complicated because each city has […]

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