About the Author
James K Barath, CMPS
James K Barath is a Certified Mortgage Planning Specialist, qualified liability advisor and your FHA Home Loan Expert. He is also a graduate of Purdue University, The CMPS Institute, Dale Carnegie Human Relations Course & Napoleon Hill Foundation's PMA Science of Success Class. It's your home and your future. It's his profession and his passion. He is ready to work for your best interest. Contact James Barath today for your Borrow Smart Analysis - the CALM Approach to Borrowing ! His Motto: I Facilitate the American Dream Through Responsible Mortgage Lending and Financial Literacy!
My Contributions
Believe It or Not, Banks Start To Loosen Up In Underwriting
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!After a half-decade of tightening mortgage guidelines, banks are starting to “loosen up”. The Federal Reserve conducts a quarterly survey of its member banks and, last quarter, not a single responding bank reported having tightened its mortgage guidelines for prime borrowers. A “prime borrower”... [Read more]
Home Affordability Threatened By Friday’s Jobs Report
This week, once more, we find mortgage rates are on a downward trajectory. Conforming mortgage rates have returned to near all-time lows. After Friday morning’s Non-Farm Payrolls report, however, those low rates may come to an end. It’s a risky time for Indiana and Illinois home buyers and would-be refinancers to be without a locked rate. Each month, on the first Friday, the Bureau of Labor... [Read more]
Case-Shiller Index Says Detroit And Washington DC Lead The Market
Standard & Poors released its November 2011 Case-Shiller Index this week. The index measures the change in home prices from month-to-month, and year-to-year, in select U.S. cities. According to the data, for the second straight month, home values fell in 19 of the Case-Shiller Index’s 20 tracked markets. In addition, also for the second straight month, Phoenix, Arizona was the lone Case-Shiller-tracked... [Read more]
The Week Ahead for Mortgage Rates: January 30, 2012
Mortgage markets improved last week as news from the Federal Reserve, the U.S. economy, and Europe combined to spur new demand for mortgage-backed bonds. Conforming mortgage rates rallied from Wednesday through Friday’s close, ending the week near all-time lows set earlier this year. Last week’s rally was sparked by the Federal Open Market Committee. After its first meeting of the year,... [Read more]
A Simple Explanation Of The Federal Reserve Statement (January 25, 2012)
Wednesday, the Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee voted to leave the Fed Funds Rate unchanged within its current target range of 0.000-0.250 percent. The Fed Funds Rate has been near zero percent since December 2008. For the third consecutive month, the Fed Funds Rate vote was nearly unanimous. Just one FOMC member dissented in the 9-1 vote, objecting only to the language used in... [Read more]
The Federal Reserve Meets Today: Mortgage Rates Expected To Move
The Federal Open Market Committee adjourns from a scheduled 2-day meeting today, its the first of 8 scheduled meetings this year. The FOMC is a designated, rotating, 12-person committee within the Federal Reserve, led by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. Members of the FOMC sub-committee are the voting members of the Federal Reserve; the ones that ultimately determine U.S. monetary policy. The... [Read more]
The Week Ahead For Mortgage Rates: January 23, 2012
The outlook for the U.S. economy improved last week, taking the mortgage bond market with it. For the first time this year, conforming mortgage rates rose throughout Indiana and Illinois from one week to the next. Data was strong across all categories last week. Home Resales: Existing Home Sales rose 5% New Homes: Single-Family Housing Starts rose 4% Builders: Home Builder Confidence rose to a 5-year... [Read more]
Behind The Housing Starts Headlines, The Story That Matters
When it comes to housing data, sometimes you have to look past the headlines. December’s Housing Starts data offers a terrific illustration of why. Each month, the Census Bureau tallies Housing Starts for the month prior. A “housing start” is a home on which construction has started. The Housing Starts report is separated by property type. There is a count for single-family homes;... [Read more]
The Week Ahead for Mortgage Rates: January 17, 2012
Mortgage markets gained last week, picking up momentum into the weekend. Global demand for mortgage-backed bonds helped push mortgage rates to new lows, and closing costs eased somewhat, too. According to Freddie Mac’s weekly mortgage rate survey, the average 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate fell to 3.89% nationwide. In order to get access to 3.89% mortgage rates, Freddie Mac said, mortgage applicants... [Read more]