2006 Third Best Year For Sales

The National Association of Realtors® reports existing-home sales eased but prices stabilized as inventories tightened in December, while 2006 was the third-highest sales year on record.

Total existing-home sales – Total existing-home sales – including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops – eased 0.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate1 of 6.22 million units in December from a level of 6.27 million in November. Sales were 7.9 percent lower than a 6.75 million-unit pace in December 2005. There were 6,480,000 existing-home sales in all of 2006, down 8.4 percent from a record 7,075,000 in 2005. The second highest total was 6,779,000 in 2004; NAR began tracking home sales in 1968.

CNNMoney.com Reports Housing Start Rebound

CNNMoney.com reports the pace of homebuilding rebounded in December, with housing starts jumping to an annual pace of 1.64 million from a revised 1.57 million rate in November. The rebound took place even as single-family home construction remained weak. Read full story...

All forecasts call for 2007 real estate sales to be stronger than 2006, making this a great time to buy Knox County real estate. Visit SamMiller.com to search all Knox County homes for sale.

Paying Points Doesn't Pay

FreddieMac.com reported interest rates inched up this week. The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 6.21 percent compared to the previous week's 6.18 percent.

When rates inch up, borrowers become more interested in paying upfront discount points to reduce their interest rate over the life of the loan. One discount point is equal to one percent of the loan balance and is paid at the time of closing.

A new study by MarketWatch.com indicates that paying upfront points rarely saves the borrower money. You must weigh the upfront costs against the long term savings and most borrowers over-estimate the amount of time they will pay on the loan without refinancing or actually own the house.

If you are thinking of buying a home and are weighing your options concerning paying discount points, contact me. I'm glad to discuss this with you and assist with you with making a good home buying decision.

Also, visit KnoxCountyMLS.com to receive new Knox County real estate listings as they hit the market. It's fast, easy, convenient and FREE.

Consumer Confidence Booms

The Consumer Confidence Index boomed in December, increasing 3.70 points from the November index of 105.3 to 109.0. while it may be too early to predict, the increase may be an indication that the housing slump across most of the country has run it's course and is on the upswing.