Tag Archives: home equity

Real Estate

Home Owners Equity Rising Above Water

Jenga Style Homes Photo courtesy of Pleated-jeans.com
Jenga Style Homes Photo courtesy of Pleated-jeans.com

In the next 15 months, 8.3 million home owners — about 18 percent of home owners who have a mortgage — are expected to gain enough equity to be in a better position to sell their homes, according to RealtyTrac’s September report on home equity.

“Steadily rising home prices are lifting all boats in this housing market and should spill over into more inventory of homes for sale in the coming months,” says Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac. “Home owners who already have ample equity are quickly building on that equity, while the 8.3 million homeowners on the fence with little or no equity are on track to regain enough equity to sell before 2015 if home prices continue to increase at the rate of 1.33 percent per month that they have since bottoming out in March 2012.

The 8.3 million of home owners have a range of 10 percent negative equity to 10 percent positive equity, according to RealtyTrac. Home owners with low equity may face challenges in selling a home due to the cost of the sale and having a down payment on a new home. As equity rises, more home owners are in the position to sell their home without having to resort such actions as a short sale.

The report also notes that one in four home owners in foreclosure also were found to have positive equity. Home owners with equity may have a better chance at selling their homes before letting the foreclosure process run its course, Blomquist says.

But that’s “assuming they realize they have equity and don’t miss the opportunity to leverage that equity,” Blomquist says. “Even home owners deeply underwater have reason for hope, with about 150,000 each month rising past the 25 percent negative equity milestone — although it will certainly take years rather than months before most of those homeowners have enough equity to sell other than via short sale.”

Source: National Association of Realtor©

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Real Estate

Some Reverse Mortgages Are Now Cheaper

A reverse mortgage has long been considered a loan of last resort because of its high fees. Now, a new type of reverse mortgage is attracting the attention of more-affluent borrowers eager to extract cash from their homes. But older homeowners—and the adult children who advise them—need to be aware of the new trade-offs.

Reverse mortgages allow people age 62 or older to convert their home equity into cash. The homeowner can elect to receive a lump sum, a line of credit or monthly payments. The loan is due, with interest, when the borrower dies, moves, sells the house or fails to pay property taxes or homeowner’s insurance. (With a conventional loan, such as a home-equity line of credit, a borrower can tap into a home’s equity but must make monthly repayments.)

One of the biggest criticisms of reverse mortgages is their upfront fees, which can total as much as 5% of a home’s value. Last fall, the Federal Housing Administration, which insures virtually all reverse mortgages, introduced the “Saver,” which reduces these fees by about 40%. Lenders such as MetLife Bank, Bank of America and Wells Fargo have since begun marketing them.

To cover its potential losses on a reverse mortgage—which can occur when a home isn’t worth enough to repay the loan—the FHA traditionally pockets as much as 2% of the value of the property. This “mortgage insurance premium” is typically the largest upfront charge in a regular reverse mortgage.

With the Saver, the FHA has cut this insurance premium to 0.01%. That is because homeowners who apply for a Saver are typically limited to borrowing about 80% to 90% of what they could get with a regular reverse mortgage, says Peter Bell, president of the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association. On a $500,000 home, for example, a 75-year-old New York resident would receive about $262,000 with a Saver, versus $331,500 with a traditional reverse mortgage, according to MetLife Bank.

Source: Wall Street Journal

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Real Estate

Good Real Estate News: Home Equity is Rising Again

Numerous articles have reported that homeowners are underwater and that strategic defaults are increasing. However, a little known statistic by the Federal Reserve shows that home equity again is on the rise.

KEEP THIS IN MIND

• The Federal Reserve conducts substantial research on mortgage balances and home-value changes in hundreds of local markets nationwide and reports its finding quarterly. According to the Fed’s most recent “flow of funds” survey, homeowners’ net equity increased by nearly $1 trillion compared with the recession’s lowest point between the first and third quarters of 2009. From June 30 to Sept. 30, net equity rose by $418 billion.

• According to a report by Zillow.com, the overall negative equity rate among U.S. homeowners remained flat in the fourth quarter at 21.4 percent. This report, combined with other housing factors and studies, may indicate that the unprecedented reduction in home equity is shifting.

• Some homeowners, especially those in areas with high foreclosure rates, are choosing to strategically default on their mortgages, even though they can afford the mortgage. Many homeowners who choose this approach do so because they do not see an economic rationale in continuing to make their mortgage payments. Homeowners considering this option should be aware of the negative effect it will have on their credit status. Foreclosures can remain on credit reports for up to seven years, likely increasing the interest rates the consumer pays for credit, and making it more difficult to receive approval on a new mortgage loan.

To read the full story, please click here: Washington Post