SUMMERFIELD - Pequea Township development combines townhomes, villas

Summerfield, a new development in Pequea Township, is close to Routes 272 and 222, offers a variety of floor plans and sizes, and is next to an elementary school.

It's a combination the Wellington Development Group believes will attract both first-time buyers with young children and empty nesters looking for smaller living spaces.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/588537_Pequea-Township-development-combines-townhomes--villas.html#ixzz1n7mDiVWK

BUY A HOUSE OR...BURY YOUR MONEY?

If you’re given a choice to either invest $1,000 in a two-year bank certificate of deposit or bury that money in your backyard, don’t spend too much time thinking about it, because for all practical purposes you’ll come out the same either way.Researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) say you’ll earn 83 cents more with the CD than burying your money, so the CD’s probably the better deal. But after you factor in the gas to get to the bank to buy your CD you’re probably better off going with the buried money and just taking advantage of inflation.
So, where should you put your money? Andreas Rauterkus, an assistant professor of finance at the UAB School of Business, says you should buy a house.

Read more....

Resource: realtor.org 1/30/12

How Long Will Low Mortgage Rates Last?

For nine consecutive weeks, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has been hovering at or below record lows of 4 percent, pushing housing affordability for home buyers even higher.

But will these low rates stick around much longer?

The Federal Reserve has vowed to keep rates low through 2013 so rates likely will hang around for a few more months, at least, but whether mortgage rates will stay at the current record-lows, many experts say it’s unlikely. Read More

Source: “Low Mortgage Rates Likely to Continue Through 2012, Experts Say,” Los Angeles Times (Jan. 3, 2012)

Mortgage Rates Reach New Record Lows

Just in time for the holidays:
Mortgage rates reached new all-time lows this week, pushing home buyer affordability even higher, Freddie Mac reports in its weekly mortgage market survey.

"Rates on 30-year fixed mortgages have been at or below 4 percent for the last eight weeks and now are almost 0.9 percentage points below where they were at the beginning of the year, which means that today's home buyers are paying over $1,200 less per year on a $200,000 loan,” Frank Nothaft, chief economist at Freddie Mac, said in a statement. “This greater affordability helped push existing home sales higher for the second consecutive month in November to an annualized pace of 4.42 million, the most since January.”

Here’s a closer look at mortgage rates for the week ending Dec. 22:

Read more:

Resource: Daily Real Estate News | Friday, December 23, 2011 

Mortgage Rates Drop Sharply This Week

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, the most popular choice among home buyers, dropped to its second lowest reading on record this week, Freddie Mac reports in its weekly mortgage market survey. 

"Market concerns over the European debt market drew investors to U.S. Treasury securities, lowering bond yields and mortgage rates,” says Frank Nothaft, chief economist at Freddie Mac. Read more...

Resource: Daily Real Estate News | Friday, November 04, 2011