Mack's Blog

Interest on 30-year fixed home loans dropped below the 5 percent threshold this past week, reported Freddie Mac. The rate slipped to 4.97 percent after averaging 5.01 percent the previous week and 5.16 percent a year ago. Long-term mortgage interest set a record low of 4.71 percent in early December and has hovered near [...]

Long-term mortgage rates climbed above 5 percent this past week, as 30-year, fixed loans averaged 5.01 percent compared to 4.98 percent the previous week, according to Freddie Mac. Average interest on 15-year, fixed loans rose to 4.40 percent from 4.39 percent; and five-year, adjustable-rate mortgages climbed to 4.27 percent from 4.25 percent. One-year [...]

Beginning February 1, the Federal Housing Administration will provide mortgage insurance for some purchases in which the seller bought the property and held it for fewer than 90 days.
*** BEGIN QUOTE *** “FHA borrowers, because of the restrictions we are now lifting, have often been shut out from buying affordable properties,” said [...]

Goal: Help Our Community How: Give Easter Seals $100 Million

Good news: Thanks to your efforts, the CENTURY 21® System raised nearly $2.1 million for Easter Seals in 2009!
Great news: The CENTURY 21 System has now raised over $100 million for Easter Seals! This is a testament to the generosity and [...]

>From time to time I will post real estate terms and an explanation of the term so stay tuned:
Abstract of Title -A condensed history or summary of all transactions affecting a particular tract of land.
Access – The right to enter and leave a tract of land from public access. Can include the [...]

Rates Still Low, Nearly Flat
Mortgage interest for the past week held fairly close to the previous week’s rates, reports Freddie Mac. Average interest on 30-year fixed loans slipped a notch to 4.98 percent from 4.99 percent and was down from 5.10 percent a year ago. While still higher than the historic lower of 4.71 [...]

=-O Referral Fee to Retired Agent?
QUESTION: I am a broker and was wondering if I can pay a referral fee to a retired real estate agent for sending me a client to show property to. How can I compensate him?
ANSWER: It will depend upon whether the agent’s license was active when [...]

Four Demographic Waves to Watch
As this recession was first getting underway, former Chief Economist for NAR John Tuccillo was interviewed and asked what REALTORS should be studying to succeed in the real estate era ahead. His first answer to that question was simple: demographics. The population changes that are coming will affect everything about [...]