2011 Mortgage Trends: Jumbo Loans, Cash Buys

January 13, 2011 by Melodye · Leave a Comment 

The number of mortgage applications for home purchases is expected to become a bigger part of the mortgage market in 2011 as home prices stabilize, predicts the Mortgage Bankers Association. Refinancing has mostly dominated in recent months as home owners looked to lock-in low interest rates, but experts predict refinancing to slow as new mortgage [...]

Mortgage Applications Jump as Rates Ease

January 13, 2011 by Melodye · Leave a Comment 

The Mortgage Bankers Association’s index of loan demand climbed 2.2 percent overall for the week ended Jan. 7, to its highest level in nearly a month.
The group’s index of refinancing applications rose 4.9 percent, while its gauge of loan requests for home purchases fell 3.7 percent.
Source:“Mortgage Applications Rise as Lending Rates Ease,” CNBC News, Jan. [...]

Housing Values Drop, But Insurance Rises?

January 7, 2011 by Melodye · Leave a Comment 

Housing Values Drop, But Insurance Rises?
Home prices are falling across the country, but many home owners are paying more to insure their homes. So why is insurance going up when a home’s value is going down?
“The price of homeowners’ insurance is based on the cost to repair or rebuild your home. The price of a [...]

States With the Longest Foreclosure Processes

January 7, 2011 by Melodye · Leave a Comment 

Once a home owner falls into foreclosure, the eviction doesn’t happen right away — in fact, it may take years before delinquent borrowers finally have to turn over their keys.
Data by LPS Applied Analytics shows that New York holds the longest average in the nation–mortgage loans in the foreclosure process in New York have been [...]

Home Modifications for Boomers Are Booming

December 22, 2010 by Melodye · Leave a Comment 

Home Modifications for Boomers Are Booming
A survey by AARP earlier this year found that 33 percent of adults older than 45 have modified their homes to allow them to age comfortably in place.
Aging-in-place modifications can include:
· Decorative grab bars in showers
· Step-free entrances
· Levered door handles
· Raised electrical outlets
· Bathrooms that can accommodate wheelchairs
· Widened [...]

Home Trends

December 22, 2010 by Melodye · Leave a Comment 

So what does 2011 hold for home decor? Expect lots of 2011 forecasts in the coming weeks. Here are highlights from a recent article in which design experts chime in what they expect to see popular in home design in the New Year.
1. Old is ‘New’
Vintage is to be hot in 2011. Period pieces that [...]

Housing Analyst says “Worst is Over”

April 27, 2010 by Melodye · Leave a Comment 

Here is an article I just found confirming what I thought about the housing market turning around, if you ask me the change began in November 2009 and has been on an upward climb ever since especially in Fairfield County CT (Stamford, Darien, Greenwich, Fairfield, Westport).
Housing Analyst says ‘Worst Is Over’
Housing has slowed to the [...]

About Darien

February 12, 2010 by Melodye · Leave a Comment 

Darien, CT Originally part of Stamford, the area known today as Darien became Middlesex Parish in 1737.  Darien was incorporated as a town in 1820.  The town is an attractive blend of seaside living and suburbia.  Leisure and sporting activities abound in this town of roughly 20,000.  More on Darien, CT…