Singer Island, Florida – Weekly Market Update 02/05/10 – Condos for Sale

 

There are 329 condos for resale on Singer Island; 15 condos are currently pending. One condo sold within the past 7 days for 88% of its list price after being on the market for 99 days.

 

 

Rates for the 30-yr. fixed mortgage rose just above 5% going from 4.98 percent to 5.01 percent. This time last year the 30-year average was 5.25 percent. The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate rose slightly to 4.40 percent from 4.39 percent the previous week.

“Mortgage rates remained relatively stable for a second week amid news of a strengthening housing market,” said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. “Residential fixed investment rose for two consecutive quarters over the last half of 2009 following a steady quarterly decline since the beginning of 2006. Pending existing home sales rebounded by 1 percent in December from a record drop in November that was due in part to the original expiration of the homebuyer tax credit, according the National Association of Realtors®.. More recently mortgage applications for home purchases jumped 10 percent at the end of January, according to figures from the Mortgage Bankers Association..”

“Even more encouraging news came from the Federal Reserve’s Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey., which reported that banks have generally stopped tightening standards on most types of loans in the fourth quarter of 2009, with commercial real estate as the exception. However, banks have yet to unwind the tightening that occurred over the last two years. Moreover, substantially fewer banks expected credit quality to deteriorate over the coming year.”

Only 14 percent of the industry experts polled by Bankate.com this week expect rates to decline over the next 30 to 45 days, with the remaining split evenly, 43% foreseeing no change and 43% predicting an increase.

For more information on specific condominium sales activity contact Jeannie at 561-889-6734 or email her at Jeannie@JWalkerGroup.com.

Singert Island Florida – Weekly Market Update 01/29/10 – Condos for Sale

 

There are 328 condos for resale on Singer Island; 12 condos are currently pending. No condos sold within the past 7 days.

Rates for the 30-yr. fixed mortgage dropped slightly from 4.99 percent to 4.98 percent, remaining below the 5 percent benchmark. This time last year the 30-year average was 5.10 percent. The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate fell as well to 4.39 percent from 4.40 percent the previous week.

According to Freddie Mac, low interest rates tend to lure borrowers to refinance. In last year’s fourth quarter, 33 percent of borrowers who refinanced their mortgage chose to lower their principal balance rather that extract cash from their home equity, the highest share since Freddie Mac started tracking refinance transactions in 1985.

In turn, only about $11 billion in home equity was cashed out by homeowners who refinanced their conventional prime mortgage, the smallest quarterly amount in nine years, Freddie Mac said.

Half (50%) of the morgage experts polled by Bankrate.com expect an increase in rates over the next 30 to 45 days, while a 29 percent foresee no chnage and the remaining 21 percent expect a decline.

For more information on specific condominium sales activity contact Jeannie at 561-889-6734 or email her at Jeannie@JWalkerGroup.com.

Singer Island Florida – Weekly Market Update 01/22/10 – Condos for Sale

 

There are 328 condos for resale on Singer Island; 11 condos are currently pending. Three condos sold within the past 7 days with a sale price 87%, 96% and 60% of list price and 65, 29, 1139 days on market, respectively.

Rates for the 30-yr. fixed mortgage dropped below 5% last week down from the previous week’s 5.06 percent to 4.99 percent. This time last year the 30-year average was 5.12 percent. The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 4.40 percent from 4.45 percent the previous week.

“Fixed mortgage rates followed bond yields lower for the third consecutive week, pushing 30-year mortgages below 5 percent once more,” said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. “Similarly, ARM rates eased along with shorter-term rates, as the federal funds futures market indicates no increase in the Federal Reserve’s. target rate following its upcoming committee meeting on January 26th and 27th.

“Because of reduced sample sizes and work disruptions that occur with severe weather, housing starts tend to be more volatile during winter months. And, indeed, housing starts. declined 4.0 percent in December, falling short of the market consensus of no change. Building permits., which are less vulnerable to weather interruptions, unexpectedly jumped 10.9 percent.”

Just about half (46%) of the morgage experts polled by Bankrate.com expect no rate change over the next 30 to 45 days, while a little more than a third (36%) foresee an increase and the remaining 18 percent expect a decline.

For more information on specific condominium sales activity contact Jeannie at 561-889-6734 or email her at Jeannie@JWalkerGroup.com.

Singer Island Florida – Weekly Market Update 01/15/10 – Condos for Sale

 

There are 322 condos for resale on Singer Island; 15 condos are currently pending. One condo sold within the past 7 days with a sale price 90% of list price and 202 days on market. 

 

Rates for the 30-yr. fixed mortgage remained above 5% but are down slightly from last week’s 5.09 percent to 5.06 percent. This time last year the 30-year average was 4.96 percent. The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 4.45 percent from 4.50 percent the previous week.

“Interest rates for fixed-rate mortgages eased a little further this week, while ARM rates were mixed,” said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. “With fixed mortgage rates staying near a record low, many homeowners are taking the opportunity to refinance. For instance, over the past three-and-a-half months, on average more than 75 percent of conventional mortgage applications were for refinance transactions, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Do not expect much fluctuation over  the next 30 to 45 days with 48 percent of the industry experts predicting minimal change according to Bankrate.com; 36 percent expect an increase and the remaining 18 percent call for a decrease.

For more information on specific condominium sales activity contact Jeannie at 561-889-6734 or email her at Jeannie@JWalkerGroup.com.

Singer Island Florida – Weekly Market Update 01/08/10 – Condos for Sale

 

There are 323 condos for resale on Singer Island; 16 condos are currently pending. No condos sold within the past 7 days.

 

Rates for the 30-yr. fixed mortgage remainded above 5% but are down from last week’s 5.14 percent to 5.09 percent. This time last year the 30-year average was 5.01 percent. The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 4.50 percent from 4.54 percent the previous week.

Fannie Mae announced on January 7, 2010 that it would comprehensively review hundreds of condominium projects in Florida. Through a new “Special Approval” designation, Fannie hopes to streamline mortgage approvals for projects that don’t currently fit Fannie Mae guidelines even though they present limited risk to the company.

“This is good news for Florida and a step in the right direction for the state’s condominium market,” says Florida Realtors® Vice President Summer Greene. “Hopefully, with the special approval designation process, we can begin to get our condo inventories reduced and absorbed as more condo buyers receive a green light from lenders for loans. This will help boost confidence in the market.”

The industry experts are almost evenly split as to the direction of interest rates over the next 30 to 45 days with 36 percent expecting an increase, another 36 percent predicting a decline and the remaining 28 percent expecting no change.

For more information on specific condominium sales activity contact Jeannie at 561-889-6734 or email her at Jeannie@JWalkerGroup.com.

Singer Island Florida – Weekly Market Update 01/01/10 – Condos for Sale

 

There are 320 condos for resale on Singer Island; 13 condos are currently pending. Three condos sold within the past 7 days at an average sales price of 72% of list; and average days on market of 479.

 

 

Rates for the 30-yr. fixed mortgage remainded above 5% for a second straight week rising to 5.14 percent from 5.07 percent.  This time last year the 30-year average was 5.10 percent.   The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate rose to 4.54 percent from 4.45 percent the previous week.

Although long-term mortgage rates rose for the fourth week in a row, they still remain affordable by historical standards,” said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist.  “Based on today’s median loan amount of $138,000, monthly principal and interest payments for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage are close to one-third less than a decade ago when rates peaked at 8.6 percent in May 2000. This translates into almost 50 percent less in interest payments over the full 30-year term.

“Nationally, the housing market is slowly improving.  House prices rose for the fifth consecutive month in October to the highest level since the beginning of 2009, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller® 20-city composite index.  Eleven of the cities experienced positive growth.”

For more information on specific condominium sales activity contact Jeannie at 561-889-6734 or email her at Jeannie@JWalkerGroup.com.

Happy Holiday from Singer Island, Florida

Happy Holidays

 

and a

 

Prosperous New Years

 

To our customers, friends & associates –

We want to take a moment to wish all of you and your families a very happy, healthy Holiday & prosperous 2010.

Our lives are so fast paced, so hectic sometimes… and we just want to say that we truely appreciate all of you!

May your holiday and coming year be filled with happiness, good health, family and friends.

Warmest Wishes,

Jeannie and Jim

Singer Island Florida – Weekly Market Update 12/18/09 – Condos for Sale

 

There are 351 condos for resale on Singer Island; 12 condos are currently pending. Two condos sold within the past 7 days at a sales price of 63% and 48% of list; and days on market of 325 and 323, respectively.

 

 

Rates for the 30-yr. fixed mortgage rose for a second straight week to 4.94 percent from 4.81 percent; still remaining below the 5 percent benchmark. The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate rose to 4.38 percent from 4.32 percent the previous week.

Roughly three out of four mortgage applications were for refinancing during the first two weeks of December according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

About forty percent of the mortgage industry experts polled by Bankrate.com expect the rates to remain steady over the next 30 to 45 days; while 27 percent foresee an additional decrease and the remaining 33 percent believe rates will rise.

For more information on specific condominium sales activity contact Jeannie at 561-889-6734 or email her at Jeannie@JWalkerGroup.com.

Singer Island Florida – Weekly Market Update 12/11/09 – Condos for Sale

 

There are 350 condos for resale on Singer Island; 14 condos are currently pending. Two condos sold within the past 7 days at a sales price of 82% and 71% of list; and days on market of 76 and 301, respectively.

 

Rates for the 30-yr. fixed mortgage rose to 4.81 percent this week up from the record low last week of 4.71 percent; still remaining below the 5 percent benchmark. Last year at this time, the 30-year fixed mortgage averaged 5.47 percent. 

The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate rose to 4.32 percent from 4.27 percent the previous week.

Mortgage applications to buy a home rose 4 percent last week, while refinance applications jumped 11 percent from th prior week according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Fifty-seven percent of the mortgage industry experts polled by Bankrate.com expect the rates to rise over the next 30 to 45 days; while 14 percent foresee an additional decrease and the remaining 29 percent expect no change.

For more information on specific condominium sales activity contact Jeannie at 561-889-6734 or email her at Jeannie@JWalkerGroup.com.

Singer Island Florida – Weekly Market Update 12/04/09 – Condos for Sale

 

There are 347 condos for resale on Singer Island; 14 condos are currently pending. Three condos sold within the past 7 days at an average sales price of 86% of list; and average days on market of 315.

Rates for the 30-yr. fixed mortgage reached a new record low this past week falling below the previous record low of 4.78 percent to 4.71 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year fixed mortgage averaged 5.97 percent. The 30-year has not been this low since the week ending April 30, 2009, when it averaged 4.78 percent.

The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate fell to a record low of 4.27 percent from 4.29 percent the previous week.

Sixty-two percent of the mortgage industry experts polled by Bankrate.com do not expect the record-low rates to last long.  Only 7 percent foresee an additional decrease over the next 30 to 45 days, while the remaining 31 percent expect no change.

For more information on specific condominium sales activity contact Jeannie at 561-889-6734 or email her at Jeannie@JWalkerGroup.com.