03 Apr 08 
A Changing Market
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to New Homes Section's Blog. Thanks for visiting!
Real estate experts are suggesting that the housing market around the country is less than two years away from a turnaround. Now I know that everyone has heard this before, but the statistics now show that this may be true. Recently released from the California Association of Realtors, are some facts that I think everyone should know about Orange County real estate buyers and sellers. With the current changes to the lending practices and available jobs continuing to increase, it is believed that the mortgage crisis may be coming to an end or at least beginning to stabilize in Orange County and the rest of the United States real estate market.
- The Federal Reserve has reduced its lending rate six times since September, and did so twice in January by 1.25 percentage points. On March 18 the Fed made another cut of three-quarters of a point.
- With more homes on the market for longer periods of time, buyers have more choices and leverage when choosing a home in today’s market.
- The foreclosure crisis has motivated the government to create more consumer protections against predatory lenders. This led to the drafting of several bills in the works that will make a significant difference in future lending.
- A temporary increase in the conforming loan limit means consumers will be able to borrow money at lower interest rates even for higher priced homes. Prior to the increase, the conforming loan limit was $417,000.
Tags: california association of realtors, California Real Estate, federal reserve, foreclosure, housing market, interest rate cut, Orange County real estate
