Entries by DomresRealEstate

Adjustable-rate mortgage applications rise in Tampa Bay alongside climbing interest rates

Adjustable-rate mortgage applications hit a 14-year high of 11% of total mortgage applications in May, according to a Mortgage Bankers Association report. ARMs, which played a central role in the 2008 housing market collapse, are trending upward in Tampa Bay alongside rising interest rates, but they aren’t a reason for concern, according to Bank of Tampa Pinellas Market President Owen LaFave. “The product has changed a lot since the last [economic] cycle. It’s not as risky,” LaFave told…

As mortgage rates continue to rise, housing affordability hits a 15-year low in Tampa Bay

Mortgage costs, skyrocketing home prices and interest rate hikes have made mortgages the least affordable since the Bush administration. Nationally, mortgage rates have increased by nearly 6% in early June. The data shows that a new purchase of a typical U.S. home at this rate would mean monthly mortgage payments of $2,127, which is 51% higher than a year ago and up 36% year to date. “Mortgage rates took an unprecedented leap skyward over the past two weeks and quickly multiplied housing costs…