“Mortgage rates have been drifting higher for most of the year due to sustained inflation and the reevaluation of the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy path,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist. “While newly released inflation data from March shows a trend of tiny movement, the financial market’s reaction paints a far different economic picture. Since inflation decelerated from 9% to 3% between June 2022 and June 2023, the annual growth rate of inflation has remained effectively flat, ranging from 3.1% to 3.7% and averaging 3.3%. The March estimate of 3.5% annual growth is in the m ..read more

Before you buy a home, you must plan for all the costs you’ll be responsible for. While saving for the down payment, don’t forget you’ll want to prep for closing costs. Here’s some helpful information on those costs and how much you should budget for them. What Are Closing Costs? A recent article from Bankrate explains: “Closing costs are the fees and expenses you must pay before becoming the legal owner of a house, condo or townhome . . . Closing costs vary depending on the purchase price of the home and how it’s being financed . . .” Your closing costs are the additional fee ..read more

“Mortgage rates showed little movement again this week, hovering around 6.8 percent,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist. “Since the start of 2024, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has not reached seven percent but has not dropped below 6.6 percent either. While incoming economic signals indicate lower rates of inflation, we do not expect rates will decrease meaningfully in the near term. On the plus side, inventory is improving somewhat, which should help temper home price growth.” News Facts The 30-year FRM averaged 6.82 percent as of April 4, 2024, up from last week wh ..read more

If you’re trying to sell your house, you may be looking at this spring season as the sweet spot – and you’re not wrong. We’re still in a seller’s market because there are so few homes for sale right now. And historically, this is the time of year when more buyers move, and competition ticks up. That makes this an exciting time to put up that for sale sign. But while conditions are great for sellers like you, you’ll still want to be strategic when it comes time to set your asking price. That’s because pricing your house too high may cost you in ..read more

ONE OF THE MOST INTERESTING UNIQUE HOMES I’ve ever listed. Almost 9000 sf on a half acre with a real lap pool. There are 6 Ensuite “apartments” – some are studios and some are 1 bedroom. They each have kitchenettes, laundry, and backyard/balcony access. The left side of the house has 2 huge living rooms and the primary bedroom over the 3 car garage. The balconies run all around the house. Let’s figure out the best use for this property. Muliti-Gen family? Group home? STR? Corporate retreat? What ideas do you have? You can view the online auction by CLICKING HERE!       The post ..read more

“Mortgage rates moved slightly lower this week, providing a bit more room in the budgets of some prospective homebuyers,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist. “We also are seeing encouraging data on existing home sales, which reflects improving inventory. Regardless, rates remain elevated near seven percent as markets watch for signs of cooling inflation, hoping that rates will come down further.” News Facts The 30-year FRM averaged 6.79 percent as of March 28, 2024, down from last week when it averaged 6.87 percent. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.32 ..read more

Are you thinking about buying a home? If so, you’re probably wondering: should I buy now or wait? Nobody can make that decision for you, but here’s some information that can help you decide. What’s Next for Home Prices? Each quarter, Fannie Mae and Pulsenomics publish the results of the Home Price Expectations Survey (HPES). It asks more than 100 experts—economists, real estate professionals, and investment and market strategists—what they think will happen with home prices. In the latest survey, those experts say home prices are going to keep going ..read more

If you’ve been thinking about buying a home, mortgage rates are probably top of mind for you. They may even be why you’ve put your plans on hold for now. When rates climbed near 8% last year, some buyers found the numbers just didn’t make sense for their budget anymore. That may be the case for you too.     Data from Bright MLS shows the top reason buyers delayed their plans to move is due to high mortgage rates (see graph below):   David Childers, CEO at Keeping Current Matters, speaks to this statistic in the recent ..read more

“The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased again this week, with declines totaling almost a quarter of a percent in two weeks,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist. “Despite the recent dip, mortgage rates remain high as the market contends with the pressure of sticky inflation. In this environment, there is a good possibility that rates will stay higher for a longer period.” News Facts The 30-year FRM averaged 6.74 percent as of March 14, 2024, down from last week when it averaged 6.88 percent. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.60 percent. The 15-ye ..read more

Property taxes in Nevada pay for local services such as roads, schools, and police. However, the property tax rates in Nevada are some of the lowest in the U.S. The state’s average effective property tax rate is just 0.48%. Compared to the 0.99% national average, that rate is quite low. Homeowners in Nevada are protected from steep increases in property tax bills by Nevada’s property tax abatement law, which limits annual increases in property tax bills to a maximum of 3% for homeowners. Nevada Property Tax Rules Property taxes in Nevada are based on the market value of a property, as well as ..read more