The jumbo loan rates took a nice tumble this last week – down by over half a percentage point. A jumbo loan in Bellingham & Whatcom County is for an amount greater than $417,000. Everything else remained stable – still excellent rates!
A financing tip from Sidney:
Define your budget and get yourself approved for a loan before you find a house you want to buy. This will take very little time and will allow you to identify your price range so that you can be comfortable with your monthly payment. It is important to factor in all your debts (and let your lender know them) when getting a pre-approval. Debts are not just credit cards, auto loans & student loans – they may also include alimony, child support or any other regularly scheduled payments.
Home loan rates as of Wednesday, March 17 are in the following table. For more details, or a custom quote, contact SidneyStonecypher at People’s Bank, 360-676-4597 or sidney.stonecypher@peoplesbank-wa.com. Remember that many variables come into play in determining the rate a lender will give a borrower. If you are getting a rate quote from a lender who does not have all your information, that rate may not be real. What with the low rates and the tax credits, it is a great time to buy a house!
Down Payment
Interest Rate
APR
Credit Score
Points
Conventional 30 yr fixed
20%
4.750%
4.859%
740
1
Conventional 15 yr fixed
20%
4.250%
4.406%
740
1
Jumbo 30 yr fixed
20%
5.625%
5.709%
740
1
FHA 30 yr fixed
3.50%
4.625%
5.006%
580*
1
VA 30 yr fixed
0%
4.625%
5.023%
*
1
*Score requirement will vary by lender
If you have other questions about financing, don’t hesitate to contact us and we will get you the answer. If you are wondering, other people probably are as well. For general financing and market information, check out our website.
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With loan rates as low as they are, you may be thinking about refinancing. If you have a second mortgage, your primary loan may still be refinanced, but the process is a bit more complicated because you must get permission from your home equity lender (unless you plan to pay them off as part of the refinance). The lender doing the refinance will need to submit a request for subordination to the second mortgage holder. This allows the new mortgage to move into the first position being vacated by the existing first mortgage. The second position lender (your home equity lender) will usually require a copy of your new loan application, credit report and a copy of the appraisal, together with a fee. If they don’t agree, the only way you will be able to refinance is by paying off both the existing loans.
Home loan rates as of Wednesday, March 10 are in the following table. Rates for 30 year fixed rate conventional, FHA & VA loans dropped just a bit, while the 15 year conventional rate held steady and the Jumbo loan rate increased a bit. For more details, or a custom quote, contact SidneyStonecypher at People’s Bank, 360-676-4597 or sidney.stonecypher@peoplesbank-wa.com. Remember that many variables come into play in determining the rate a lender will give a borrower. If you are getting a rate quote from a lender who does not have all your information, that rate may not be real. What with the low rates and the tax credits, it is a great time to buy a house!
Down Payment
Interest Rate
APR
Credit Score
Points
Conventional 30 yr fixed
20%
4.750%
4.865%
740
1
Conventional 15 yr fixed
20%
4.250%
4.406%
740
1
Jumbo 30 yr fixed
20%
6.25%
6.357%
740
1
FHA 30 yr fixed
3.50%
4.625%
5.008%
580*
1
VA 30 yr fixed
0%
4.625%
5.024%
*
1
*Score requirement will vary by lender
If you have other questions about financing, don’t hesitate to contact us and we will get you the answer. If you are wondering, other people probably are as well. For general financing and market information, check out our website.
Share and Enjoy:These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
You know the saying “there is no place like home”. And yes, there is really no other, especially when you talk about a peaceful home. Home is where you tend to feel the most comfortable thus steps to make your home more peaceful can be benificial for all that live there. Below are some tips courtesy of Pillar to Post Home Inspections Services to help make your home a more peaceful environment.
Up the fluff to create comfort.
Fluff up your pillows or pile them together; soft, overstuffed pillows project warmth, comfort and security, so we feel more relaxed just by looking at them. No wonder photographers and Realtors use this trick to make homes look more inviting!
Make your tub more tranquil.
Steep two chamomile tea bags right in the tub. Its relaxing properties will be absorbed through your pores and into your blood stream. Plus, chamomile will relieve tired, achy muscles, and its pleasant aroma will bring a smile to your face.
Grow soothing lavender indoors.
The scent of this sweet flower increases relaxing alpha waves in the brain. It’ll thrive in your home if you place it in a sunny location and let it dry out between waterings.
Create a “my” space.
In a clutter-free corner, place a small chair and lamp to read by. This will give you a spot to go to when you need to relax and shield yourself from the stress of the day.
Paint a wall a restful green.
Soft green produces a soothing effect on the eyes because of how easily it is absorbed by the retina, reveals a recent study commissioned by The Corporate Design Foundation.
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Happy Monday. The first Pending Ratios for the month of March were completed on Saturday. Every week we take a snap shot of the real estate market and track the number of homes on the market that have offers on them and those that do not, this is what we call Pending Ratios. It was a great week for the pending ratios and an active one for the real estate market in all of Whatcom County with all of the communities that we track seeing a rise in pending homes.
As of Saturday, March 6th, the pending ratio in Bellingham was 20% Pending is the time frame between when an offer has been mutual accepted between the buyer’s and the seller’s of the home and when the title actually transfers hands. This give the buyer’s time to get the financing, do inspection, review the title reports and more.
To view a complete history of Whatcom County Pending Ratios or for other real estate statistics don’t hesitate to contact The Johnson Team at (360) 303-2734 or by email at Info@JohnsonTeamRealEstate.com
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After the strong increase in number of units sold in December, January was a letdown, with unit sales down by 26% in Bellingham, although up in Whatcom County as a whole from 2009. February brought the numbers back, resulting in year to date sales nearly even in Bellingham compared to 2009 and up in Whatcom County overall. Bellingham has traditionally been the strongest residential sales area in the county, so the shift to greater strength in the county over the past 2 months has been an aberration – it will be interesting to see how the rest of the year develops. Prices continue to soften, with both averages & medians trending downward in most areas. Some details
January/February residential units sold decreased by 1.3% in Bellingham and increased 17.4% in Whatcom County as a whole over January/February 2009.
Average sale prices for homes in Bellingham during the first two months of 2010 were even with 2009, but the median fell by 8.4%
Average sale prices for homes sold in Whatcom County as a whole dropped by 4.7% from 2009, while the median was down 1.9%.
The strongest markets in Whatcom County in terms of residential units sold relative to a year ago were Ferndale and Birch Bay/Blaine, up by 100% and 28.6 % respectively. Their average prices dropped by 6% to 8.6%, but the median in Ferndale rose 12%.
Sudden Valley is holding its own, and Lynden is continuing to struggle.
The chart below shows unit sales, average sale prices and median sale prices over the past 3 years in Whatcom County as a whole.
For the complete Bellingham and Whatcom County statistics, charts and predictions visit the February Real Estate Report online. For ongoing real estate numbers, go to www.JohnsonTeamRealEstate.com. We update the site weekly with everything from interest rates to market conditions to information from Fannie Mae, the FED and the FDIC. Also, feel free to call us at (360) 303-2734 or e-mailInfo@JohnsonTeamRealEstate.comif you want to know more about a specific portion of the market – we track a lot more than we have space to report.
If your neighborhood would like a presentation or a link to your website of up-to-date information on real estate in the neighborhood, we can provide it – just give us a call.
www.JohnsonTeamRealEstate.com also includes a constantly updated list of newly listed properties and a list of properties being offered as short sales & foreclosures (REOs), as well as the entire listing database of the Northwest Multiple Listing Service, fully searchable to your specifications.
Share and Enjoy:These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
You know the saying “there is no place like home”. And yes, there is really no other, especially when you talk about a peaceful home. Home is where you tend to feel the most comfortable thus steps to make your home more peaceful can be benificial for all that live there. Below are some tips courtesy of Pillar to Post Home Inspections Services to help make your home a more peaceful environment.
Happy Monday. The first Pending Ratios for the month of March were completed on Saturday. Every week we take a snap shot of the real estate market and track the number of homes on the market that have offers on them and those that do not, this is what we call Pending Ratios. It was a great week for the pending ratios and an active one for the real estate market in all of Whatcom County with all of the communities that we track seeing a rise in pending homes.![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=9a0a2958-7c1d-4151-88b0-6a70f4e423d1)
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