Housing starts for new single-family homes and apartments continued their steady rise, up 1.5% for August, their strongest pace in nine months. This puts housing starts at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 598,000, their highest level since November of last year. This sign of steady improvement in home building made economists even more confident Q3 growth will be positive, signaling the recession is over.
Mortgage rates continue to remain at three-month lows. Freddie Mac's weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey showed average long-term mortgage rates down for the third week in a row! The 30-year fixed rate mortgage is just above 5% with an average 0.7 point (including the origination fee). The average rate for 15-year fixed rate mortgages hit a new record low in the Survey. These rates are for prime borrowers with an 80% or lower loan-to-value ratio on loans eligible for purchase by Freddie Mac.
Finally, please remember the $8,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers is set to expire in just over two months. Those eligible need to close by November 30!
- Jeanette Eide
- Bellevue, Washington
- I’m a full-time professional Realtor specializing in residential resale and new construction in Seattle, Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland, Issaquah, Newcastle, Sammamish, Bothell, Mill Creek, Snohomish, Everett, Woodinville, Kent, and Renton. Together with my husband Erik, we have over 17 years experience. We take the time to listen – getting to know you and establishing your exact needs. From there, our sole focus is getting you where you want to be, on time, in the smoothest manner possible. Together with our team of professionals, the closing of your transaction will be handled knowledgeably with the attention to detail you expect and deserve.
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