▶ VideoYesterday, my wife sent me a meme that shared interesting information: in 1971 interest rates were 7.3%, and they didn’t move lower for more than 20 years. During that time, home prices increased significantly. 10 years later, in 1981, rates maxed out at 18.6% because of inflation. It got me thinking: how is that possible?…
▶ VideoEveryone is talking about supply and demand, and it’s true that this is one factor affecting real estate pricing. For example, with housing, the reason we haven’t seen prices come down is that supply is so low. The ongoing demand keeps prices up, which is what we’ve been seeing in the last few years. Debt…
▶ VideoThere is a lot of conversation on the topic of employment and how it relates to inflation – and what The Fed decides to do. The jobs reports come out on the first Friday of every month, showing the previous month’s numbers. The Wednesday before that, we always get the report from ADP: a massive…
▶ VideoTomorrow is PCE, which is the Fed’s favorite inflation read. As we all know, they are trying to get it to 2%. The question is: are we ever going to get there? I watched a podcast yesterday by Barry Habib. Remember, the way inflation happens is comparing the last 12 month-over-month readings. They add them…
▶ VideoToday, I want to talk about a program that has been around for a while, but it doesn’t get nearly as much attention as it should. It’s a true “no ratio” program for primary residences. How Do No Ratio Loans Work? “No ratio” kind of sounds like stated income and acts like it too. The…
▶ VideoOne of the biggest complaints I hear right now is about how expensive housing is. I agree! It’s insane how much prices have gone up, and it doesn’t help that rates are high as well. Looking at the Numbers: Buying vs. Renting I put together some numbers to help us understand what it really looks…
▶ VideoLast week, Fannie Mae released a report. The main takeaway is that they are expecting the number of housing unit sales to increase. Thank goodness! I don’t know exactly where the inventory is going to come from yet, but that is the prediction. Interest Rates Will Be Dropping The other notable piece of information is…
▶ VideoToday’s topic is inflation – specifically the Consumer Price Index (CPI). This report is one of the big pieces of information that comes out monthly, and it’s all about inflation. The way it’s measured is based on the month-over-month number (the percentage change from the previous month), then it adds everything up to give us…
▶ VideoToday is Fed Day! Every 6 weeks, The Fed gets together to work on policy stuff. They have a direct impact on the Fed funds rate. All other rates are affected by this, including 10-year treasury and mortgage-backed securities (which actually set mortgage rates). Updates from Today’s Fed Meeting Today’s announcement was that they are…
▶ VideoWhat if we are in the best scenario for homeownership that we will see for some time? I’m hearing so many things from homebuyers: I don’t know if any of these things are going to happen. The Fed is already saying they are probably going to lower rates, which should help. But who knows! Factors…
▶ VideoHappy Holidays! As we are quickly approaching the New Year, I wanted to talk about the interest rate decrease that we are seeing. It’s significant! Even though rates are down, many people are wondering what it means? So, I thought it would help to put real numbers to it. Many people will see a savings…
▶ VideoIn today’s video, I’m talking about new home construction. One thing that I am seeing is that many of these home sites are offering big reductions on interest rates. They are basically buying down a few points on your rate as an incentive to use their in-house lender and buy from their portfolio. It sounds…
