Tucker School Blog 3

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2013 Mid-Year Outlook: Economic Growth on the Road to ‘Normal’

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By Pete Bakel The U.S. may be well into a prolonged period of steady economic growth, but it hasn’t yet reached its full potential, according to Fannie Mae’s (FNMA/OTC) Economic & Strategic Research Group. Fiscal headwinds are expected to keep growth to below 2.0 percent for the first half of the year, with gradual strengthening in the second half of 2013 and into 2014. However, as fiscal ...

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Property Values Take Flight: Home Prices Soar By Over 20 Percent

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Some of the housing news being kicked around recently is astounding: Home prices soaring by 20 percent or more over the past 12 months? Multiple offers? Bidding wars? All of the great news has some wondering, is another housing bubble brewing? Experts think not. According to the business forecast aficionados at Kiplinger, there are huge differences between what we see happening today in even the h...

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Builder Confidence Hits 7-Year High, New Home Sales Rising

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In continuing signs the housing market is on the upswing, builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes hit a significant milestone in June, surging eight points to a reading of 52 on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) released this week. Any reading over 50 indicates that more builders view sales conditions as good than poor. â€...

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Home Sales Rise with Strong Increases – How to Get Your Piece of the Pie

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Home sales are on their way up; Existing-home sales improved in May and remain solidly above a year ago, while the median price continued to rise by double-digit rates from a year earlier, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, says the recovery is strengthening and to expect limited housing supplies for the balance of the year in much of the countr...

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U.S. Housing Prices to Continue Stabilizing in 2013

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BMO Economics commented recently that higher equity and home values must be providing some much-needed comfort to U.S. consumers, following the release of the S&P Case-Shiller home price index for June which showed a more-than-expected rise of 0.9 per cent, seasonally adjusted. “This represented the fifth straight monthly gain, and lands the index 0.5 per cent above year-earlier levels â...

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Mortgage Rates Change Little, Remain Near Record Lows

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Freddie Mac recently released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing fixed mortgage rates declining or remaining the same from the previous week amid mixed economic data, and continuing to hover around their all-time record lows. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 3.55 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending September 6, 2012, down from last...

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July Housing Scorecard Shows Continuing Signs of Recovery

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The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury recently released the July edition of the Obama Administration’s Housing Scorecard – a comprehensive report on the nation’s housing market. Data in the Housing Scorecard show continued signs of recovery as foreclosure starts and completions declined in June, though officials expect activity...

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New Home vs. Old Home – Which Home Is Best for Your Buyer?

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By Monica O’Neill The real estate market is full of a great variety of homes for potential buyers to choose from. One of the first decisions a potential buyer must consider is their preference for finding an existing home or building a new one. Keeping clarity in this situation means focusing your clients on their needs, budget and lifestyle. Consider the following: Aggressive incentives are...

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Five Great Tips for Achieving a Work-Life Balance

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Between your family, work, your exercise routine and your social life, finding time to relax may seem like a laughable notion. But while a busy schedule can make taking time out to relax difficult, it should still be a priority—right up there with making it to your son’s Little League games or your Monday morning meeting. Here are a few tips for achieving a work-life balance. 1) Manage your ti...

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Slowing but Still Improved: New-Home Sales Decline in June

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Sales of newly built, single-family homes slowed 8.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 350,000 units in June following an upwardly revised, strong pace in the previous month, according to figures released today by HUD and the U.S. Census Bureau. “While we would have liked to see a third consecutive month of new-home sales gains in June, the fact remains that the sales numbers are u...

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