Mortgage rates

Homebuilder sentiment improved in June as record-low interest rates and demand for more space spurred buyers to re-emerge after the coronavirus shut down sales and construction.

During a seven-day period earlier this month, there were 1,740 new home listings and 270 listings coming back on the market, and 2,065 pending sales, according to the Greater Metropolitan Association of Realtors.

Home sales in the Baltimore area plummeted in May, the steepest drop in a decade amid the pandemic, but record-low mortgage rates are pushing buyers into the housing market.

Mortgage rates increased slightly for the second consecutive week, buoyed early on by positive economic news such as the jobs report that came out last Friday, according to Freddie Mac.

Home sales in New Hampshire cratered in May thanks to fewer homes on the market and more caution by sellers during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Federal Reserve pledged to maintain at least the current pace of asset purchases and projected interest rates will remain near zero through 2022, as Chairman Jerome Powell committed the central bank to using all its tools to help the economy recover from the coronavirus.

Mortgage investors can take heart knowing the Federal Reserve considers agency MBS a primary arena through which to conduct monetary policy.

Mortgage applications increased 9.3% from one week earlier, fueled by low mortgage rates and the release of pent-up demand, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Southern California housing markets are rebounding off what arguably was the worst April in the history books.

Sales of single-family homes and condominiums on Oahu tanked in May as owners and buyers elected to practice social distancing.