The new construction market continues to improve. As reported by the Census Bureau, 369,000 new homes were sold last month on a seasonally-adjusted, annualized basis. A "new home" is a home that is considered new construction. May's data marks the highest number of new homes sold since April 2010
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06/30/2012
The Federal Home Finance Agency's Home Price Index shows home values up 0.8% in April on a monthly, seasonally-adjusted basis. April marks the third consecutive month during which home values increased and the index is now up 3 percent from last year at this time. As a home buyer La Quinta Real
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06/30/2012
The Federal Open Market Committee voted to leave the Fed Funds Rate unchanged within its current target range of 0.000-0.250 percent Wednesday. For the fifth consecutive meeting, the Fed Funds Rate vote was nearly unanimous. Just one FOMC member, Richmond Federal Reserve President Jeffrey Lacker,
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06/25/2012
Mortgage rates have resumed their downward trend. According to Freddie Mac's weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the national average 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate fell 5 basis points to 3.66% this week. The rate is available to "prime" borrowers who are willing to pay, on average, 0.7 disc
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06/25/2012
The number of U.S. housing markets showing "measurable and sustained growth" slipped by 20 in June, according to the National Association of Homebuilders. The Improving Market Index is meant to identify housing markets in which economic growth is occurring as a whole -- not just in the real estat
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06/14/2012
It's a money-saving time to be a La Quinta home buyer. Historically, mortgage rates of all types -- conventional, FHA, VA and USDA -- have never been lower and low mortgage rates make for low monthly payments. According to Freddie Mac's weekly mortgage rate survey, the average 30-year fixed rate
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06/12/2012
When you preview homes as a home buyer, you can get a good feel for the home's visible traits -- its finishes, its room counts, and its landscaping, for example. What you can't get a feel for, though, is the home's "bones". It's for this reason that real estate professionals recommend that you ha
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06/08/2012
Beginning Monday, June 11, the FHA is changing its mortgage insurance premium schedule for the second time this year. Some FHA mortgage applicants will pay lower mortgage insurance premiums going forward. Others will pay more. The new premiums apply to all FHA mortgages, both purchase and refinan
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06/08/2012
Foreclosures filings fell 5 percent between March and April of this year, and by 11 percent as compared to one year ago. The data comes from RealtyTrac. The foreclosure-tracking firm tallied fewer than 189,000 foreclosure-related actions last month -- the fewest number since July 2007. Rapidly-de
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06/05/2012
Insurance is protection against unexpected expenses and insurance policies are available for nearly any scenario you can envision -- even your own ransom. But just because an insurance policy is available, that doesn't mean you should buy it. Some insurance policies give you good bang for the buc
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06/05/2012
