High yield investors have been chasing the attractive dividend payouts offered by the mortgage REIT sector for years and years now. Unlike the high payouts from telecom, tobacco, and utilities stocks, the mortgage REIT…
ThinkstockThe National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported today that its housing market index for 55+ single-family housing rose to 46 in the first quarter of 2013, up 19 points year-over-year and the highest…
ThinkstockThe delinquency rate for mortgage loans at the end of the first quarter of 2013 rose to a seasonally adjusted rate of 7.25%. That is 16 basis points higher than the delinquency rate at…
ThinkstockThe quasi-private mortgage-finance company, Fannie Mae, posted a $58.7 billion profit in the first quarter, thanks to recognition of a tax benefit worth $50.6 billion. Fannie Mae generated $8.1 billion in pretax earnings in…
wikimedia commonsWhile industry research group RealtyTrac reported foreclosure activity dropped to a 74-month low in April, the figures could not disguise the fact that in some cities and some states, such as Nevada and…
ThinkstockThe Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released its weekly report on mortgage applications this morning, noting an increase of 7% in the group’s seasonally adjusted composite index, following a rise of 1.8% for the previous…
Home prices rose 10.5% in March, compared with the same month a year ago, the largest monthly increase since March 2006, according to research firm CoreLogic Inc. (NYSE: CLGX). The firm had previously forecast…
ThinkstockThe latest data from Lender Processing Services Inc. (NYSE: LPS) shows that the total U.S. mortgage loan delinquency rate has fallen from 6.8% in February to 6.59% in March, and that mortgages in foreclosure…
ThinkstockThe housing market numbers may have recently softened up a tad, but things in the housing market are still much better for those wanting buy and own a home compared the last five years. Many…
ThinkstockIn its weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey, home lending giant Freddie Mac reported a record-low lending rate for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage of 2.56%. The firm also noted drops in three other mortgage lending…
ThinkstockThe U.S. Census Bureau reported this morning that construction spending in March dropped 1.7% to an estimated seasonally adjusted annual rate of $856.7 billion from a downwardly revised estimate of $871.2 billion in February.…
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released its weekly report on mortgage applications this morning, noting an increase of 1.8% in the group’s seasonally adjusted composite index following a rise of 0.2% for the previous…
ThinkstockIn the month of Martch, 55,000 U.S. homes were foreclosed, more than a revised total of 52,000 in February and down from 66,000 in March 2012, according to research firm CoreLogic Inc. (NYSE: CLGX).…
ThinkstockThe S&P/Case-Shiller home price index for February was higher for the 11th consecutive month. The 20-city composite rose 9.3% year-over-year, more than the consensus estimate for a gain of 9%, and above the January…
ThinkstockThe National Association of Realtors (NAR) this morning released its data on pending sales of existing homes in March. The pending home sales index rose 1.5% from a downwardly revised 104.1 in February to…