Post-Fiscal Cliff, Mortgage Markets Turn Attention To Jobs Data

Jan 03

Post-Fiscal Cliff, Mortgage Markets Turn Attention To Jobs Data

January 3, 2013 By Joshua Oliver Leave a Comment

Mortgage rates moved higher Wednesday up congressional leaders voted to avoid the "Fiscal Cliff". Mortgage-backed securities (MBS) fell as investors bid up stock prices. Confidence among investors and consumers typically causes mortgage rates to rise. That's what happened Wednesday. For Thursday and Friday, expect jobs data to dictate where District of Columbia mortgage rates are headed. The Federal Reserve has said that the national Unemployment Rate will dictate future monetary … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Buying Real Estate in Washington, DC, Selling Real Estate in Washington, DC Tagged With: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Federal funds rate, Federal Reserve System, Friday, Jobless claims, Jobs, Mortgage loan, Unemployment, Unemployment Rate, Wall Street, washington dc

Nov 27

M Squared Welcomes Claire Angela Welsh

November 27, 2012 By M Squared Leave a Comment

Washington native Claire Welsh knows the D.C. metropolitan area inside and out. She was born in Adams Morgan, grew up in the Del Ray section of Alexandria and graduated from Georgetown University. Over the past eight years, Claire has had extensive experience in local real estate. Starting her career with McWilliams Ballard, she worked closely with some of the Washington area’s leading developers. As the sales manager for a Kettler development in Northern Virginia, her project was the top … [Read more...]

Filed Under: M Squared Company News Tagged With: Adams Morgan, Alexandria, claire welsh, Georgetown University, homewithclaire.com, Northern Virginia, Washington, washington dc

Nov 26

Simple, Inexpensive Ways To Prep Your Home For Sale

November 26, 2012 By Claire Welsh Leave a Comment

When DC homeowners get ready to list, advice will often come from all corners of their personal and social network -- what within the home to upgrade; what to repair; what to replace. And, although some advice remains valuable, much of it can be ignored. The costs of an expensive upgrade are rarely recouped at the time of sale and studies show that smaller, simpler actions can yield a bigger return on your investment of time and money. Here are four inexpensive, yet highly effective, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Selling Real Estate in Washington, DC Tagged With: Curb appeal, District of Columbia, Home and Garden, Home Staging, Lighting, Paint, real estate, washington dc, Windows

Nov 19

Federal Reserve : New Economic Stimulus May Be Warranted

November 19, 2012 By Justin Paulhamus Leave a Comment

The Federal Reserve released its October Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes last week, revealing a Fed in disagreement about the future of the U.S. economy and about what, if any, stimulus may be warranted in the next 12 months. The "Fed Minutes" recaps the conversations and debates that transpire during an FOMC meeting, and is published 3 weeks after the meeting adjourns. According to the October minutes, FOMC members "generally agreed" that a housing recovery is under … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Buying Real Estate in Washington, DC Tagged With: District of Columbia, Fed Minutes, Federal Reserve System, FOMC, Freddie Mac, Purchasing Power, washington dc

Nov 12

M Squared Real Estate Introduces New, Responsive Virtual Tours

November 12, 2012 By Dominic Morrocco Leave a Comment

M Squared's New, Flashless, HTML5 Virtual Tours

Leading independent, Washington DC brokerage firm M Squared Real Estate, introduces new Flash-less virtual tours 100% compatible with all browsers, smartphones & tablets. M Squared Real Estate, an official Metropolitan Regional Information Systems (MRIS) virtual tour vendor, is pleased to introduce new, “flashless” virtual tours which are produced for all company listings, at no charge to the firm’s agents, and syndicated to over 900 third-party real estate portals and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: M Squared Company News Tagged With: html5, jquery, m squared, marketing, Metropolitan Regional Information Systems, real estate, Virtual tour, washington dc

Oct 31

19 of 20 Case-Shiller Index Markets Improve In August

October 31, 2012 By Claire Welsh Leave a Comment

Home value rose to close out the summer, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller Index, a national home-valuation tracker. Nationwide, values rose 0.9% between July and August 2012 with 19 of 20 tracked markets showing improvement. Only one tracked city -- Seattle, Washington -- showed a decrease, falling just 0.1 percent. On an annual basis, 17 of the 20 Case-Shiller Index markets improved, led by Phoenix. Home values in the Arizona city are up 18.8 percent from August 2011. The next … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Buying Real Estate in Washington, DC Tagged With: Case-Shiller Index, Home Values, Phoenix, real estate, Real estate pricing, United States, washington dc

Oct 24

Simple Explanation Of The Federal Reserve Statement (October 24 , 2012)

October 24, 2012 By Jessica Wilkie Leave a Comment

The Federal Open Market Committee voted to leave the Fed Funds Rate unchanged within its current target range of 0.000-0.250 percent Wednesday. For the ninth consecutive meeting, the vote was nearly unanimous. And, also for the ninth consecutive meeting, Richmond Federal Reserve President Jeffrey Lacker was the lone dissenter in the 9-1 vote. The Fed Funds Rate has been near zero percent since December 2008. In its press release, the Federal Reserve noted that, since its last meeting … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Buying Real Estate in Washington, DC Tagged With: Ben Bernanke, Eurozone, Fed Funds Rate, Federal funds rate, Federal Open Market Committee, Federal Reserve System, FOMC, mortgage, Mortgage loan, QE3, washington dc

Oct 24

Home Supplies Drop To Multi-Year Low

October 24, 2012 By Joshua Oliver Leave a Comment

As the third quarter closed, home resales showed considerable momentum nationwide. The National Association of REALTORS® reports Existing Home Sales at 4.75 million units in September 2012 on a seasonally-adjusted, annualized basis, an 11 percent increase from one year ago. An "existing home" is a home that's been previously occupied; a resale. The reading marks the second-highest tally of the year -- second only to August 2012 when 4.83 million homes were sold on a … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Selling Real Estate in Washington, DC Tagged With: Existing Home Sales, Existing Home Supply, foreclosure, NAR, National Association of Realtors, real estate, Real estate pricing, Sales, September, U.S. Housing Market, washington dc

Oct 22

What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week : October 22, 2012

October 22, 2012 By Justin Paulhamus Leave a Comment

Mortgage markets worsened last week as hope for a European economic rebound and stronger-than-expected U.S. economic data moved investors out of mortgage-backed bonds. Mortgage rates all of types -- conventional, FHA and VA -- lost ground last week, harming home affordability in DC and reducing purchasing power nationwide. Rising rates also thwarted would-be refinancing households hoping to time a market bottom. The increase runs counter to Freddie Mac's weekly Primary Mortgage Market … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Buying Real Estate in Washington, DC Tagged With: District of Columbia, Federal Open Market Committee, FOMC, Freddie Mac, mortgage, mortgage rates, New Home Sales, Purchasing Power, washington dc

Oct 18

Single-Family Housing Starts Rise To 4-Year High

October 18, 2012 By Justin Paulhamus Leave a Comment

The housing market continues to improve. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, on a seasonally-adjusted, annualized basis, Single-Family Housing Starts rose to 603,000 last month, an 11 percent increase from the month prior and the highest reading in more than 4 years. A "housing start" is a home on which construction has started and home builders are breaking ground at rates not seen even during the 2010 federal home buyer tax credit period. It's a signal to home buyers throughout … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Buying Real Estate in Washington, DC, Selling Real Estate in Washington, DC Tagged With: Census Bureau, District of Columbia, Housing Starts, Purchasing Power, real estate sales, washington dc