Today FASB announced its decision in favor of relaxing standards on mark-to-market accounting rules.  As discussed in yesterdays post it was speculated that the equity markets would favor relaxed standards and the bond market may not.  This speculation came to fruition as we saw the DOW post a gain...

Today Mortgage Rates ended where they started.  Prior to Obama’s Foreclosure Plan speech  MBS reached their worst, which I am confident, put lenders fingers on the trigger.  During the speech the majority of the losses were recouped.  Overall we did see a good amount of action in the MBS today,...

Tax Credit for Homebuyers First-time homebuyers who purchase homes from the start of the year until the end of November 2009 may be eligible for the lower of an $8,000 or 10% of the value of the home tax credit.  Remember a tax credit is very different than a tax deduction – a tax credit is equivalent...

The week started out in a positive manner with rates improving both Monday and Tuesday, only to stall out on Wednesday and give back the majority of the gains Thursday and Friday. Mortgage Backed Securities ended the week with only a slight 3bp gain over last week. Friday we saw MBS give up -28bp (FNMA...

Fannie Mae rolled-back one of its least popular mortgage guidelines updates of the last 12 months. Effective March 1, 2009, real estate investors can once again own and finance up to 10 individual properties. The restriction reversal does come with new minimum requirements, however. Homeowners buying...

Image by respres via Flickr If you are planning on buying an foreclosure home it is imperative that you work with an Realtor that is well versed with foreclosure transactions. Each bank has their own set of guidelines and many to not acknowledge the Arizona Real Estate Purchase Contract so the...

Short sales are different than bank-owned/foreclosure/repo homes, and also different than regular resales. They are a strange mix of the two. With a short sale, the owner still technically owns their home, but owes more on their mortgage than what the home is worth. Therefore, in order to sell, they...

Mortgage rates remained relatively unchanged today (see real time rates). In a speech today Bernanke suggest “the next step should be getting toxic assets, like those tied to subprime mortgages, off bank balance sheets”. (See video)  With Seattle being one of the few that has managed to weather...

After an impressive first week of 2009, rates have moved up slightly to start the week higher. MBS closed relatively unchanged, although early pressure pushed prices down, putting lender in the position to increase rates by .125% and hold them there for the day. Rates are still crazy LOW! Market moving...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Quartz_crystal.jpg It’s that Time of Year again 2009 predictions. Comment on your TOP Three (3) Real Estate, Finance/Mortgage and Economic 2009 Predictions.  Whoever’s Predictions first come to fruition and scores a Trifecta will win themselves $300 (from Your...