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According to  Freddie Mac’s  latest  Primary Mortgage Market Survey ,  interest rates for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage are currently at 3.92%, which is still near record lows in comparison to recent history! The interest rate you secure when buying a home not only greatly impacts your monthly  housing costs , but also impacts your purchasing power. Purchasing power, simply put, is the amount of home you can afford to buy for the budget you have available to spend. As rates increase, the price of the house you can afford will decrease if you plan to stay within a certain monthly housing budget. The chart below shows what impact rising interest rates would have if you planned to purchase a home within the national median price range, and planned to keep your principal and interest payments between $1,850-$1,900 a month For More Info: Home for Sale North Carolina  

There is little doubt that it is easier to get a home mortgage today than it was last year. The  Mortgage Credit Availability Index  (MCAI), published by the  Mortgage Bankers Association,  shows that mortgage credit has become more available in each of the last several years. In fact, in just the last year: More buyers are putting less than 20% down to purchase a home The average credit score on closed mortgages is lower More low-down-payment programs have been introduced This has some people worrying that we are returning to the lax lending standards which led to the boom and bust that real estate experienced ten years ago. Let’s alleviate some of that concern. The graph below shows the MCAI going back to the boom years of 2004-2005. The higher the graph line, the easier it was to get a mortgage. As you can see, lending standards were much more lenient from 2004 to 2007. Though it has gradually become easier to get a mortgage since 2011, we are nowhere near the len

Every year at this time, many homeowners decide to wait until after the holidays to put their homes on the market for the first time, while others who already have their homes on the market decide to take them off until after the holidays. Here are seven great reasons not to wait: Relocation buyers are out there. Many companies are still hiring throughout the holidays and need their employees in their new positions as soon as possible. Purchasers who are looking for homes during the holidays are serious buyers and are ready to buy  now . You can restrict the showings on your home to the times you want it shown. You will remain in control. Homes show better when decorated for the holidays. There is less competition for you as a seller right now. Let’s take a look at listing inventory as compared to the same time last year: The desire to own a home doesn’t stop when the holidays come. Buyers who were unable to find their dream home during the busy spring and summer mon

Multigenerational homes are coming back in a big way! In the 1950s, about 21%, or 32.2 million Americans shared a roof with their grown children or parents. According to an article by Realtor.com, “Nearly 1 in 5 Americans is now living in a multigenerational household – a household with two or more adult generations, or grandparents living with grandchildren – a level that hasn’t been seen in the U.S. since 1950.” Another report that proves this point is the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) 2017 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers which states that 13% of home buyers purchased multigenerational homes last year. The top 3 reasons for purchasing this type of home were: To take care of aging parents (22%, up from 19% last year) Cost savings (17%) Children over the age of 18 moving back home (16%, up from 14% last year) Valerie Sheets, Spokesperson for  Lennar , points out that, “Everyone is looking for the perfect home for any number of family situations, such