Texas Mortgage Market Update – For the week of May 21, 2012 – Home builders are doing plenty with what they have, as Housing Starts rose 2.6% in April to a 717,000 annual rate. Single-family units were up 2.3% for the month and are up 18.8% from a year ago. Multi-family starts were up 3.2% for the month and are up a whopping 63.0% from a year ago. This reflects interest in the condo market, attractive to first time buyers and downsizers, as well as to investors in rental units. Building Permits were down 7.0% in April to a 715,000 annual rate, although permits for single-unit homes are up 18.5% versus a year ago. Continue reading →

Texas Mortgage Market Update – For the week of May 14, 2012 – There are more and more opportunities to grab in the housing market. After almost six years of price declines, we’re finally seeing signs of stability, as home prices rose in the first quarter in more than half the U.S. metro areas tracked by the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The median price for existing homes sold was higher than a year ago in 51% of the areas — 74 of 146 metros. Continue reading →