The latest reading for the Zillow Index of US rents shows no letup in the worst bout of housing inflation in US history. Year on year, the average US rent rose 14%, according to the real estate website. Shelter cost accounts for a third of the US government’s Consumer Price Index. But the official numbers have lagged far behind private-sector […]
The Federal Reserve Bank has been one of the biggest causes of inflation in the last two years. Is the Federal Reserve serious about getting out of the business of increasing inflation? The three biggest causes if ranked: Federal government overspending and excess stimulus 2020 and 2021 Bad federal government policies in 2021 Federal Reserve policy mismanagement 2020 and 2021 […]
FEED | CLOTHE | CARE The Storehouse is a regional organization providing assistance to those in need and the food insecure. For more than 20 years, The Storehouse and its sister organizations have provided food assistance to food insecure individuals and families. Assistance is provided to more than 1000 families per month. Its mission includes FOOD CLOTHING HOPE FOR LIFE […]
A lot of numbers came out this week which put a spotlight on interest rates, housing and inflation. All of these areas link together. An excerpt and paraphrase from New Republic Capital Markets views follows along with informaiton from Asia Times. We added commentary in places to clarify, but included links to original information. Larry Summers (Treasury Secretary under Bill […]
Paying for flood insurance on your house? As flood insurance rates soar this year, and over the next decade or two, look out for financial pain. A re-write and update of flood insurance rates by FEMA raises prices across the board. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) manages the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). Federal law caps the annual increases […]
Second Home/High Balance Mortgage Costs Rise in new loan fees to be imposed by Fannie Mae (FNMA) and Freddie Mac (FHLMC). Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac represent the largest mortgage owners–the gorillas of mortgage. Known as government sponsored enterprises (GSE’s), they own or guarantee most US mortgages–in excess of $5 trillion. Both FNMA and FHLMC went broke in 2008. The […]
Every year, more than 1 million mortgage applications are denied. Avoid a loan denial and being part of this statistic! Borrowers have tools to turn a loan denial into an approval by planning before applying. The 1 million denials do not include the number of applications which were withdrawn. Many borrowers apply to more than one lender. The Consumer Finance […]
Who said that the mortgage market couldn’t duplicate pre-2008? What about betting on interest only? That’s right, companies have resurrected interest only mortgages. And interest only options for a mortgage have expanded. Look at our checklist of pre-2008 like repetition in our post on Wacky Politicians. You can now add a new bullet to the 2008-like risks in that post: […]