Coit Group Fine Homes

 More Americans now believe it would be easy for them to get a mortgage, according to Fannie Mae’s January 2014 National Housing Survey results. Positive consumer attitudes regarding the ease of a mortgage application climbed 2 percentage points to an all-time survey high of 52 percent, while those who think it would be difficult dropped 3 points to 45 percent – an indication that consumers view mortgage credit as more accessible. While Freddie Mac still predicts more moderate home price gains over the next 12 months, consumers’ view that mortgage credit is more available may allow for continued but measured improvement in the housing recovery. Consumer attitudes about the economy also improved in January despite downbeat jobs data for the past two months. The share of consumers who believe the economy is on the right track climbed 8 percentage points to 39 percent, while the share who believe it’s on the wrong track declined to 54 percent. Additionally, the share who expe...

The Farm Bill approved by the Senate yesterday and the House last week includes a provision that will enable millions of Americans to maintain access to rural housing program loans. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) redraws its maps defining rural areas following every census, and the maps drawn after the 2010 census would have removed some communities from the program due to population growth. According to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR), however, the farm bill includes language that grandfathers current communities through the 2020 census. It also increases the population threshold for existing communities to 35,000 from 25,000 until after the 2020 U.S. census. The Rural Housing Section 502 loan program (RHS) can be used to build, repair, renovate or relocate a home, or to purchase and prepare sites, including providing water and sewage facilities. The loans are funded by private lenders, and simply insured by the RHS. The Section 502 program is self-funded an...