Hi it’s Bruce Woodburn with CrossCountry Mortgage and WDBO Radio 107.3FM and 580AM. Please tune in on Saturdays at noon for my show. We cover all the things you need to know about finance, in terms of housing and real estate trends. I’ve got your three big things that you need to know today, which is Friday, August 21st.

1. Number one: US housing starts total 1.496 million, almost 1.5 million in July, versus the 1.24 million that was expected, a pretty substantial increase in housing. The demand for single family housing is high and supply is down 14% year over year. Does Coronavirus, get the credit? Well, there’s a flight from urban to suburban living that could be due to people being tired of quarantining in high density housing and looking for a home of their own for safety. Plus, if you’re going to be working from home, well, commuting time really isn’t a big issue anymore. So, people are working from home anyway, who cares about commute time. They’re saving on commuting and they can have their own house. And what better time to get into a home while interest rates are at historical lows and I mean historical. 31 years I’ve been doing this, and I’ve never seen interest rates like this before. Keep in mind that I keep telling you guys this deal is over in November, at least for the refis.
2. All right, Number two: US homeownership hits 67.9% in the second quarter. It’s the highest since 2008 go America, right?! So, think about that. Almost 68% of Americans own a home. If you’re not part of that, let’s change that today. Call the Loan Arranger at 407-869-8830, I’ll help you get into a home!
3. Number three: Get off the fence if you’re considering refinancing. I’ve been telling you guys this for the last two and a half months while rates have been low. So, guess what happened last Wednesday at 8:24pm. Fannie and Freddie announced a half a point hit to all refis. So, if you’re thinking about refinancing it just cost you half a point more. Why would you wait around? Now, it’s not a half a point to the rate, it’s half a point to the discount. So, whatever was at no points just cost you half. BUT it’s still a good time to refinance, not as good as last week but still a good time. The closer we get to Election Day means more uncertainty. Do yourself a favor, call me, The Loan Arranger, I’ll give you the truth about refinancing. Did you know that I actually discourage about 50% of the people that I talk to for refinancing? I had a client call me today, they priced me out with Quicken and they were saving him $4, but it was costing $5800 to refinance. But they convinced them because the rate was lower that it was better. That’s ridiculous! Do not do it! Don’t get caught up with some of these lenders that just want to close another transaction. I guarantee you; you will get the truth from me and I will talk about 50% of you out of refinancing. The other 50% quit screwing around, give me a call and let’s get your house refinanced while our rates are low. If Fannie and Freddie raise their rates on refinance or you wait for FHA and VA to do the same thing, you know what’s going to happen, right. Give me a call!

Thank you again for your loyalty on my show and my client and Realtor loyalty. I’m so grateful for all of you and I look forward to hearing from you all again real soon. Have a great day.