By: Equity National September 3, 2014 No Tags Closing
Expert warns of ‘mortgage crisis’ in coming ...
Those who keep a close eye on the mortgage industry have likely been more than a little bemused about the developments seen in the past several months, as originations have slowed to a trickle despite a relatively small increase in rates and prices. But now experts warn that both could continue to increase, potentially more significantly, before the end of 2014 and into 2015, and that could cause more appreciable problems. The famed banking an...By: Equity National September 2, 2014 No Tags Closing
More single people trying to get into housing ma...
The last few years have seen significant improvement for the housing market overall, as the steps forward taken in the broader economy have fueled more interest among buyers who are now starting to get their feet back under them financially after potentially years of prior difficulty. However, it seems that many such would-be buyers might find themselves running into roadblocks, and one of the largest is their marital status. Many consumers kn...By: Equity National August 28, 2014 No Tags Closing
Home sales slip up in July
The housing market made some gains in the past several months, but there still may be a notable amount of work ahead to reach recovery. Total new single-family home sales were at 412,000 units during July, 2.4 percent lower than June's figure of 422,000 units, a report from the Department of Commerce explained. "We are somewhat surprised by this dip, considering builder confidence and new-home starts are on the rise," said Kevin K...By: Equity National August 27, 2014 No Tags Closing
Construction stalls for residential market in Ju...
Some title industry members may notice more people going to take advantage of existing property title searches in the coming months, as the level of residential construction is not moving forward quickly enough. The total rate of residential building construction spending posted a figure of $223.4 billion in July, nearly unchanged from June's level, a report from McGraw Hill Construction explained. Further issues occurred for th...By: Equity National August 25, 2014 No Tags Closing
Existing-home sales see boost in July
With more individuals looking to get properties, the title insurance market could see a boost in activity in the next few weeks. Overall existing-home sales reached a high point for 2014 in July, as the rate jumped to 5.15 million units, 2.4 percent improved from June, when it was 5.03 million units, a report from the National Association of Realtors explained. The level was still more than 4 percent lower than a year ago, when the rate w...By: Equity National August 20, 2014 No Tags Closing
Mortgage applications gain steam in August
The title insurance industry may be quite happy with the progress in the mortgage and housing markets, as a more significant level of consumers are showing interest in purchasing properties. Overall mortgage application volume rose 1.4 percent for the week ending Aug. 15, 2014 compared to the previous week, the Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey from the Mortgage Bankers Association showed. This still rose 1 percent when not seasona...By: Equity National August 19, 2014 No Tags Closing
Housing starts spike in July
The housing market made significant strides in some categories in the past couple of months, which may be significant news for those in the title insurance industry. Further interest in the market could help improve the bottom lines of many industry members. Total housing starts reached a rate of 1.09 million in July, 15.7 percent higher than June's level of 945,000 units, according to a report from the Department of Commerce. When c...By: Equity National August 15, 2014 No Tags Closing
Housing market makes some progress
Local housing conditions are getting better, though there may need to be more work done in order to encourage more individuals to take out a mortgage and acquire title insurance. A total of 56 of the 350 metropolitan areas measured throughout the country reached normal levels of housing activity and economic progress during August, according to the Leading Markets Index completed jointly between the National Association of Home Build...By: Equity National August 15, 2014 No Tags Closing
Foreclosures, delinquencies continue slide in 2Q
Further health improvements in the residential mortgage market could encourage more individuals to take advantage of a mortgage application and work to get title insurance. The total delinquency rate for residential mortgages reached 6.04 percent during the second quarter, seven basis points lower than the first quarter's level and more than 90 basis points less than the same quarter in 2013, according to the National Delinquency Sur...By: Equity National August 15, 2014 No Tags Closing