2010 December | Milestone - Kentucky Houses

December 20, 2010

Housing Starts Rise

U.S. Housing starts rose more than expected in November. The Commerce Department said that housing starts rose 3.9 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 555,000 units. They also revised October’s numbers upward to a 534,000 unit pace, it was originally reported at 519,000 units.

Ground breaking for new homes last month was lifted by a 6.9 percent rise in single-family home construction which continues to shows strength. The multi-family sector continues to struggle and fell 9.1 percent.

What Happened to Rates Last Week

Kentucky Mortgage - What Happened To Rates Last Week

Mortgage backed securities (MBS) gained +12 basis points last week causing 30 year fixed rates to move sideways from the previous week. This was the first week out of the last seven where pricing improved. However, it was a bumpy ride. MBS reached their worst levels on Wednesday which drove 30 year fixed rates to their highest levels since last May. We clawed our way back as the 10 year Treasury started to rally on very light volumes which skewed the rally somewhat.

What to Watch Out For This Week

The following are the major economic reports that will hit the market this week. They each have the ability to affect the pricing of Mortgage Backed Securities and therefore, interest rates for Government and Conventional mortgages. We will be watching these reports closely for you and let you know if there are any big surprises:

Date	ET	Release	For
22-Dec	7:00	MBA Mortgage Applications	17-Dec
22-Dec	8:30	GDP – Third Estimate	Q3
22-Dec	8:30	GDP Deflator – Third Estimate	Q3
22-Dec	10:00	Existing Home Sales	Nov
22-Dec	10:00	FHFA Home Price Index	Oct
22-Dec	10:30	Crude Inventories	18-Dec
23-Dec	8:30	Personal Income	Nov
23-Dec	8:30	Personal Spending	Nov
23-Dec	8:30	PCE Prices – Core	Nov
23-Dec	8:30	Durable Orders	Nov
23-Dec	8:30	Durable Goods Orders – ex Transportation	Nov
23-Dec	8:30	Initial Claims	18-Dec
23-Dec	8:30	Continuing Claims	11-Dec
23-Dec	9:55	University of Michigan Sentiment – Final	Dec
23-Dec	10:00	New Home Sales	Nov

Mortgage Back Securities are the only thing government and conventional mortgage rates are based upon. We are happy to monitor the live trading of these for you as it’s extremely difficult to keep track of the economy and other factors that impact Kentucky mortgage and housing markets. Happy Holidays and have a Happy New Year!

Mike Dunn, Holleigh Sharp & Jeff Sharp

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Chili Cook-off to Benefit the Needy A Huge Success

December 17, 2010

By Becky Locknane

On Tuesday, December 14, 2010, Milestone Realty Consultants’ Louisville office hosted the annual Chili Cook-off to Benefit the Needy.

Agents that sell Louisville houses from various Brokers around Louisville were in attendance. Everyone looks forward to coming by to taste the different chili that are prepared by Milestone agents. This year we had five batches of chili to choose from – there would have been six but Michelle Schnell’s chili ended up in the floorboard of her car!

Reigning Chili Cook-off Champion, Dennis Miller

The agents that made chili this year were Sherry Spanyer, Dennis Miller, Danielle Dugan, Sally Ford and yours truly. The attendees paid $6 to taste all the chilies and then vote on their favorite. Once again, Dennis Miller of The Miller Team was the proud winner of his award winning chili! Rumor has it that he paid people off to vote for his chili.

Proceeds from the chili cook-off totaled $350 and were donated to two different charities. One was Family Scholar House which is a community of families, volunteers, staff members and donors that believe education offers opportunities and hope to disadvantaged single-parent families. By providing supportive housing, academic advising, childcare, case management, mentoring, tutoring, basic needs and development programs for all ages, Family Scholar House makes it possible for very low-income single parents to continue raising their children while completing their college degree. All families seeking assistance from Family Scholar House are homeless or in unstable housing and over 90% have been victims of domestic violence. Education offers a way to transition from poverty to self-sufficiency and to offer a brighter future for their children. Many of the graduates end up buying Louisville houses which, in most cases, is their first home.

The other charity that received a donation is Rosehaven which is an organization that provides transitional care for women and children in crisis.

A great time was had by everyone and the Christmas spirit was very much alive!

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Walden Mortgage Weekly Newsletter

December 10, 2010

By Walden Mortgage Group

Pending Home Sales Surge Ahead

Pending sales of existing U.S. homes unexpectedly surged despite concerns that problems with foreclosures might curtail activity.

The National Association of Realtors Pending Home Index, which is based upon contracts that are signed but not yet closed, jumped 10.4% in October. Economists had been expecting a decline of 0.5%.

This strength in housing is directly reflective of the positive Consumer Sentiment levels. Buyers are also taking advantage of great pricing levels while they can before mortgage rates rise.

What Happened to Rates Last Week

Kentucky Mortgage - What Happened To Rates Last Week

Mortgage backed securities (MBS) lost -66 basis points last week causing 30 year fixed rates to increase from the previous week. This marks the fourth straight week of increasing mortgage rates. This further proves that you should not listen to news reports about mortgage rates. The U.S. government cannot and does not control mortgage rates. These are set by an open market place of willing sellers and purchasers of MBS. And as our economy continues to rebound, we will continue to see a longer-term trend of higher mortgage rates when compared to our artificially low mortgage rates in October.

What to Watch Out For This Week

Date	ET	Release	For
7-Dec	15:00	Consumer Credit	Oct
8-Dec	7:00	MBA Mortgage Applications	3-Dec
8-Dec	10:30	Crude Inventories	4-Dec
9-Dec	8:30	Initial Claims	4-Dec
9-Dec	8:30	Continuing Claims	27-Nov
9-Dec	10:00	Wholesale Inventories	Oct
10-Dec	8:30	Trade Balance	Oct
10-Dec	8:30	Export Prices ex-ag.	Nov
10-Dec	8:30	Import Prices ex-oil	Nov
10-Dec	9:55	Mich Sentiment	Dec
10-Dec	14:00	Treasury Budget	Nov
15-Nov	8:30	Retail Sales
15-Nov	10:00	Business Inventories

Mike Dunn, Holleigh Sharp & Jeff Sharp

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The National Association of Real Estate’s National Convention

December 4, 2010

By Louise Miller

NardiGras 2010!

What an exciting time for eighteen thousand Realtors across the USA and Japan to come together and share experiences, learn new tools and techniques and have a great opportunity to network. This year’s event was in a great location; New Orleans. It has been five years since the devastation of Katrina and you can see that the buzz in the French Quarter has returned with the beads, bars and Bourbon Street leading the way, not to mention a Muffaletta sandwich at the Central Grocery.
Besides the great trade expo with an overwhelming number of displays, the short presentations of all the new products available today were mind boggling. I would say wireless and mobile computing is here to stay and I often wonder how I managed without it. In the past 10 years, this has most likely become the most powerful tool in business and leisure.

I was fortunate enough to attend many leadership training sessions due to my elected position at my association and the two biggest challenges that were discussed time and again was the return to business as usual and how soon Realtors can expect to see the changes in lending and of course the impact of social media. This industry has forever changed the way we market to our associates and the consumer. We saw presentations on the latest flip cameras for use with U-Tube videos, how to maintain an ongoing Tweet, making sure your fan page on Facebook is up to date, etc.

I came back to Kentucky with an even greater appreciation of the prices of our Louisville houses along with the conservative market that has allowed Realtors and home buyers and sellers to still survive in this tough economy.

As Ron Phipps, the new President of NAR said in his closing remarks at our general assembly “We need to not merely be the voice of Real Estate but the architects and the engineers of the future of Real Estate.”

Louise Miller

Milestone Realty Consultants

President Elect Greater Louisville Association of Realtors

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Home Ownership Matters!!

December 1, 2010

By Becky Locknane

Home Ownership Matters, We Can Help!

“Home Ownership Matters” is NAR’s current campaign which was launched in late September. Its purpose is to overcome and counter negative claims about home ownership in the national media, according to NAR President, Vicki Cox Golder.

Critics have said that home ownership is no different from renting, as far as benefits are concerned. While they are a minority, it is important for consumers to know that it is still better to own than rent, in most cases.

The average sales price for Louisville homes is up from 01/01/09-10/31/09 for the same period of time in 2010. The average sales price in 2009 was $158, 927 compared to $165,252 in 2010. This is a huge indicator that all Real Estate is local.

Another important finding is that The National Association of Realtors estimated the impact for renter and home owner households through mid-2010 taking home price and stock market performance into account. The result suggests that despite declines in equity and housing markets, homeowners have a net worth greater than renters. Homeowner net worth ranges from 31 to 46 times that of renters over the last 12 years, according to NAR.

Louisville houses are still a great investment and the benefits of owning continue to outweigh the benefits of renting. Homeowners and prospective homeowners must remember the value of being a homeowner and the value it lends to their community and their country.

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