California Mortgage Rate Weekly News Roundup

Mortgage Interest Rates Drop To Record Levels
Interest rates on 30 year fixed home loans finally sunk below the five percent barrier; with some lenders offering rates as competitive near 4.5 percent. Even at such levels, analysts and brokers still expect slight improvements in the near future. As the Fed aims to restore confidence in mortgage backed securities, homeowners around the nation have been seeing record declines as 30 year fixed mortgages were close to 6 percent only a few months ago.

Rates Draw In Surge of Homeowners Looking to Refinance
As homeowners continue to hear of the recent decline in mortgage rates, a sector that has taken the backseat during this housing crisis has begun to emerge. While purchase activity and short sales have been prevalent, homeowners looking to refinance have not had much incentive given the stricter loan requirements. But as rates improve considerably, homeowners around the nation and in California have been lighting up the phones of mortgage brokers and lenders. As rates continue to improve, many homeowners have been seeing this as a great opportunity for monthly savings.

Find More Tips About Refinancing Your Mortgage in This Market

Troubled Homeowners in California Still Struggling
Recent findings have shown that troubled homeowners in California who have managed to avoid defaulting still remain at risk. Although laws were passed in California to properly notify those in default, and programs were setup to modify troubled home loans, the findings show that many homeowners only stall the default process. While they manage to avoid foreclosure for a short period, many of these homeowners end up in the same position down the road.

Now, for home values and market confidence, this is certainly disappointing news. But, from a logical standpoint, many of the troubled homeowners have been the folks who took advantage of loose lending and toxic mortgages. If we can agree that lending in the past few years was too lose, it’s almost expected to see a portion of these “homeowners” getting filtered out.