High End Selling Woodbury MN Real Estate Agents - Durham Executive Group         1283 Kenilworth Drive, Woodbury MN is a Spectacular Home for Sale         Don’t miss the opportunity to step inside this wonderfully secluded home, amongst towering pine trees, located in the Evergreen Development of Woodbury.The central location will provide convenient access to major highway interchanges, shopping, dining, community resources, fitness clubs and religious offerings.5 bedrooms, with 4 on the upper level and one in the lower level, create a wonderful guest suite for visitors, in-laws or older teens.Highlights include; a main level sunroom with vaulted beam ceiling and 3 walls of windows, updated kitchen includes new granite and high-end stainless steel appliances, main floor laundry housing ... 07/21/2012

Top Selling Woodbury MN Real Estate Agents - Durham Executive Group           This beautiful home (8729 Pheasant Run Circle, Woodbury, MN) received an accepted offer just days after it was placed on the market.   Ideal 4-bedroom home location in the heart of Woodbury, MN. This property has a large and useable city lot with a heavy tree line at the back of the lot and along one side providing additional privacy. Home is located on a quiet cul-de-sac centrally located in Woodbury close to shopping, dining, and exercise opportunities. A large city park (Summit) is within a few walking blocks, and a beautiful inter-connecting walking/running/biking trail around several lakes is close by. This home features a large backyard deck and three large cherry trees that annually bear amazing cherrie... 07/21/2012

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, refinance demand surged last week as mortgage rates fell to yet another survey low. The Refinance Index rose 22 percent from the week before and is near its highest level this year. Michael Fratantoni, MBA’s vice president of research and economics, said refinance application volume increased to near peak levels as mortgage rates dropped due to growing concern about the economy. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances fell to 3.74 percent from 3.79 percent the week before. Because of the spike in refinance activity, the Market Composite Index, which measures total mortgage loan application volume, was up 16.9 percent from one week earlier. The seasonally ... 07/20/2012

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, the Market Composite Index, which measures both refinance and purchase loan application volume, fell 2.1 percent last week. But, though the Refinance Index suffered a 3.0 percent decline from the previous week’s levels, the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased by the same amount, gaining 3.0 percent from the week before. Mortgage rates, on the other hand, hit new all-time lows. The average contract interest rate for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances fell to 3.79 percent from 3.86 percent. In June, the average loan size for home purchase was $240,897. Last week’s results contain an adjustment for the Fourth of July holiday.  07/18/2012

It Doesn't Matter What You Use it For - Home Staging Minneapolis, MN. You live in your home thus you can use a room or space anyway you want or need. But when you go to sell your home it is another matter. You really need to think of it as not your home any more.  If you use a space that is unique to you, your buyer will dismiss the space.  In this home there was a tiny space off the family room that the seller didn't use. To them it was just a place to put a few random furniture pieces. Wasted space to them but there is no reason to have it be wasted space to the buyer.     This seller's competition all had built-in bar areas. The return on investment was not enough to justify building the bar just for selling so show the buyer the potential. Show them what it can be!       This seller... 06/06/2012

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, the Market Composite Index, which measures total mortgage loan application volume, was up 9.2 percent last week due to a 13.0 percent surge in the Refinance Index. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index, however, fell 2.4 percent from the previous week. Michael Fratantoni, MBA’s vice president of research and economics, said the increase in refinance activity was due to a spike in the conventional sector and not because of rising government loan demand. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances fell to another new low, dropping to 3.96 percent from 4.01 percent the week before. 05/17/2012

Builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes rose five points to 29 in May, according to the National Association of Home Builders Housing Market Index. The improvement brought the index to its highest level since May 2007. Barry Rutenberg, chairman of the NAHB, said builders are reporting a pickup in sales and traffic after a pause in April. According to Rutenberg, it’s a sign that the upward trend in confidence that began earlier this year has resumed and that stabilizing prices and excellent affordability are encouraging people to purchase homes. Each of the component indexes measuring current sales, traffic, and expectations for the next six months rose in May after declining in April.  05/17/2012

Fannie Mae’s April 2012 National Housing Survey finds Americans’ attitudes toward homeownership, the economy, personal finances, and home prices continuing to improve. A large majority of respondents say now is a good time to buy a house and an increasing number say it’s a good time to sell. Doug Duncan, vice president and chief economist of Fannie Mae, said after flat lining at depressed levels for more than a year, the growing number of consumers who feel it’s a good time to sell suggests rising optimism for the housing market. Among the other highlights of the survey, the number of respondents who expressed confidence in the economy’s direction hit a two-year high in April and Americans expect home prices to rise by 1.3 percent over the next year. Also, 23 percent of Americans say th... 05/15/2012

According to a Gallup poll tracking daily economic confidence, Americans’ view of the economy is increasingly positive and is now within one point of the highest level recorded since Gallup began daily tracking of economic confidence in 2008. Nearly half of respondents to the survey, which polled 3,426 adults across all 50 states and the District of Columbia, said they feel the economy is headed in the right direction and the percentage who feel things are getting worse has fallen more than 30 percent since October 2008, at the height of the financial crisis. But, despite reaching levels equal to the highest ratings of last year, Americans’ economic confidence is still historically low when compared, for example, to levels seen in the late 1990s. 05/14/2012

New data from Freddie Mac finds 79 percent of homeowners who refinanced their mortgage during the first quarter of 2012 reduced or maintained their principal balance. The number of borrowers who were able to maintain about the same loan amount after refinancing was the highest in the 26 years Freddie Mac has been tracking the data. Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac’s vice president and chief economist, said the typical borrower reduced their mortgage rate by 1.5 percent which, on a $200,000 loan, would save them nearly $3,000 over 12 months. Also, HARP loans accounted for 20 percent of Freddie Mac’s refinance fundings during the first quarter. According to Nothaft, it was the highest share of HARP loans since the inception of the government program and was largely due to recently adopted enhan... 05/14/2012

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, the Market Composite Index, which measures both refinance and purchase loan activity, rose 1.7 percent last week from the week before. The increase was due to growing demand for conventional rather than government loans. Demand in the government market was down last week but, despite the dip, the Purchase Index rose 3.4 percent and the Refinance Index increased 1.3 percent. The refinance share of all mortgage activity was 72.1 percent. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell to 4.01 percent from 4.05 percent the week before. It was the lowest 30-year rate recorded in the history of the survey.  05/14/2012

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s monthly Housing Scorecard collects key market data and tracks the administration’s recovery efforts. The April report cites progress made in home sales and mortgage delinquencies but says there is continued fragility in the housing market. Mortgage delinquencies have declined for four straight months and existing-home sales are up more than five percent from last year’s level. Home prices, while still fragile, are beginning to show signs of stabilization and, in some markets, improvement. Also, inventory is at its lowest level in years, having fallen to levels typically associated with a healthy, balanced market.  05/07/2012

Freddie Mac’s most recent U.S. Economic and Housing Market Outlook says the labor market is on track for an increase in job growth this year and the economy and housing market continue to make progress. According to Freddie Mac’s outlook, unemployment should fall to 8.0 percent by the fourth quarter and major economic indicators such as retail sales and payroll performance should show continued improvement. Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac’s vice president and chief economist, points to the fact that the unseasonably warm winter months are likely responsible for the volatility in current housing data and the pattern isn’t likely to continue through the summer. Nothaft says, since 1959, single-family housing starts have moved an average of 9 percent between winter months but, during successive... 05/01/2012

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, refinance activity increased 13.5 percent last week and pushed the refinance share of all mortgage activity up to 75.2 percent. The spike in refinance activity helped the Market Composite Index, which measures total mortgage application volume, climb 6.9 percent from the week before despite a 11.2 percent drop in the Purchase Index. Jay Brinkmann, MBA’s chief economist, said a drop in rates last week led to the boom in refinance applications. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances fell to 4.05 percent from 4.10 percent the week before. The drop in rates tied a survey low reached in early February. Also in the report, the average loan size of all loans fo... 04/20/2012

Fannie Mae’s March 2012 National Housing Survey finds Americans more confident in their financial situation and more optimistic about the housing market than in previous months. According to the monthly survey, 73 percent of respondents say now is a good time to buy a home, which is up three points from February and at its highest level in more than a year. Doug Duncan, vice president and chief economist of Fannie Mae, said conditions are coming together to encourage people to want to buy homes. Rising rent and an expectation of higher home prices are among the conditions making homeownership more and more attractive to Americans. The number of participants who say they expect rental prices to rise over the next year is at its highest level ever recorded. And the number expecting an inc... 04/16/2012

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, mortgage rates fell to their lowest level since March 9 last week. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages dropped to 4.10 percent from 4.16 percent the week before. But, despite the drop, the Market Composite Index, which measures total mortgage loan application volume, was also down, slipping 2.4 percent from the week before. Both the Refinance and Purchase Index decreased slightly, though no adjustment was made for Good Friday. Also in the report, the refinance share of mortgage activity was 70.5 percent and the share of applications for investment properties increased to 8.3 percent, up from 7.4 percent in February.  04/16/2012

Are you underwater on your mortgage? Is your loan serviced by Fannie Mae and did you take it out prior to 6/1/09? If so, get in touch with me as I now have access to the Fannie Mae version of the Obama program to help homeowners who owe more than their house would appraise for refinance and take advantage of the lower rates! 03/27/2012

The RE/MAX Results cell phone App is finally here and best of all it is FREE. John & Becky Durham is providing the FREE cell phone and Tablet app for all of our clients, prospects, and friends.  All you need to do is text the Durham Executive Group at 651-231-2191 and request the home search App for the Twin Cities and Western Wisconsin.  The App makes searching for homes while on a mobile device easy and enjoyable. Information on the App is pulled directly from Results.net, so the high-resolution photos and expanded descriptions that you see will be available on the user's Smartphone or Tablet. One of the unique and ground-breaking parts of this new App is something called Results Radar. When a user stops in front of a home currently listed for sale on MLS and they want all the photos ... 03/01/2012

Homes are more affordable now than anytime in the past 20 years, according to the National Association of Home Builders Housing Opportunity Index. The index measures the percentage of homes affordable to a family making the national median income of $64,200. During the fourth quarter of last year, more than 75 percent of all the new and existing homes sold nationwide were affordable, the highest percentage in the index’s 20-year history. Barry Rutenberg, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders, said that report indicates that homeownership is within the reach of more households than it has been for more than two decades. 02/27/2012

If your interest rate is 4.75% or higher you are wasting money every day you let go by that you don't call me. Call for a no cost, no obligation mortgage check up. I'll need 5 minutes of your time over the phone to gather some information to show you how much money I can save you. Rates are at all time lows, so what are you waiting for? You can also apply online by clicking the below link. Have a great day and I look forward to the opportunity to help save you money! http://www.theanswerisclear.com/MLO/rmagee/ Thanks, 02/14/2012