Townstone Financial

The last two weeks have been UGLY for the mortgage market. The average rate on the popular 30-year fixed mortgage hit 7.48%, according to Mortgage News Daily.

But lack of inventory and rising rents are keeping home prices steady. It's still a seller's market here in the Midwest.

But it's not only mortgage rates that are higher. Credit card debt is reaching record highs with many rates exceeding 20%!

Here at Townstone, we're seeing a ton of activity with our fixed-rate home equity loan program that lets you take advantage of the equity in your home to help you consolidate your debt, lower your payments, make home improvements, etc...

Purchases, refinances, home equity lines/loans, reverse mortgage, we have it all! As always, FREE 1 on 1 consultations available at: https://townstone.com/consultation-request/

Have a great week!

Barry and Zach are back!

Mortgage Market Update: rates, products, trends, and more.

When does it make sense to rent vs. own?

Credit card debt is increasing nationally, if this applies to you: tap into your existing equity with a HELOC or a HELOAN!

As always, FREE 1 on 1 consultations available at: https://townstone.com/consultation-request/

“Barbenheimer” dominated headlines this week as people went to the movie theaters in droves.

But here in the mortgage world, we’re all waiting for Wednesday to watch what the Fed’s latest rate call will be. Another quarter-point hike has been priced in, but further moves are unclear, and their forward guidance will be key.

Bank of America is in the news again. I think we all know it wasn’t GOOD news. Per Barron’s “Bank of America has been fined $150 million by regulators, who said the bank had wrongly charged customers with so-called junk fees, withheld credit card points, and used customer data to open unauthorized accounts.” You’d think these major banks with in-house legal departments would be following all rules and regulations, but alas…

Do you have an adjustable-rate mortgage? Might be time to get out:

5-year ARMs from 2018 are set to adjust this year.

7-year ARMs from 2016 are set to adjust this year.

10-year ARMs from 2013 are set to adjust this year.

Home Equity Loans and Lines of Credit remain a great way to tap the equity of your home to consolidate debt, lower your payments, improve your home, or any other reason you could use some additional cash-on-hand.

As always, FREE 1 on 1 consultations available at: https://townstone.com/consultation-request/

Monday Blues? Turn that into GREEN when you tap the equity in your home with a home equity loan or line of credit. Consolidate those payments into a single new mortgage with fixed or variable terms!

Inflation at Wimbledon? The price of strawberries and cream remains frozen for a tenth consecutive year – locked in an inflation-proof bubble at £2.50 (just over $3). Congrats to Carlos Alcaraz on his victory over Novak Djokovic in a match that almost lasted 5 hours!

How loyal are you to your bank? Per Matt Levine of Bloomberg:

“Relationship businesses in general are on the decline. In a world of electronic communication and global supply chains and work-from-home and the gig economy, business relationships are less sticky and ‘I am going to go into my bank branch and shake the hand of the manager and trust her with my life savings’ doesn’t work. ‘I am going to do stuff for relationship reasons, even if it costs me 0.5% of interest income, or a slightly increased risk of losing my money’ is no longer a plausible thing to think.”

Do you agree?

Townstone has the most-loyal customers in the mortgage business because we have the most programs, the lowest rates, the cheapest costs, and the best customer service. Maybe it’s time you find that out for yourself?

Free consultations available at: https://townstone.com/consultation-request/

NASCAR comes to Chicago in what appears to be a successful event that brought life-long fans of racing together with first-time locals. The city was a great backdrop, and it was nice to have good news coverage of Chicago for a change!

4th of July weekend brought some significant purchase activity to the Midwest. Some of you were enjoying BBQs with family and friends, while others were placing bids on new properties. While there may have been a slight slowdown in June, there’s been a flurry of buying and selling activity the last two weeks.

MAKE SURE YOU ARE SHOPPING FOR THE BEST DEAL ON YOUR MORTGAGE! We’d like to think that every mortgage company out there is looking out for you, but the truth is: they aren’t. Here at Townstone, we are happy to step in and review the Loan Estimates from our competitors to tell you if you’re truly getting a square deal on your loan.

Don’t settle for 2nd-rate service, higher closing costs, or higher rates!

Townstone Financial has been helping people like you save money on their mortgage since 2002.

https://townstone.com/consultation-request/

In this era of divisiveness, it was nice to see the world come together last week to speculate on the fate of the adventurers who perished in the Titan “submarine” after paying $250,000 for the privilege.

Barry and Zach are considering starting a rocket company to offer trips to the moon out of Barry’s garage, any takers?

In real estate news: May 2023 saw listings of existing homes plummeting while at the same time, homebuilding projects surged in by the most in more than three decades.

Mortgage rates have held relatively stable since the last Fed meeting when they decided against another immediate increase, but they did expect a further 2 increases before the year was out.

If you’re in the market for a home purchase, refinance, home equity line or loan, reverse mortgage, or trip to the moon: make sure you head to Townstone.com to fill out a FREE consultation.

We have more products, lower rates, lower costs, and better haircuts than the competion. So the decision is EASY!

Smog! Hazardous air quality continues to hit parts of the eastern U.S.

Euro-zone OFFICIALLY hits a recession, but what about

here?

Investors flee Phoenix real estate market, but we're not seeing the same for residential real estate in the midwest.

Taylor Swift brings hotel occupancy in Chicago to all-time highs!

1% downpayment purchases are still our latest and greatest offer to qualifying borrowers, while home equity loans continue to be a great solution for debt-consolidation or home improvements.

As always, FREE 1 on 1 consultations available at: https://townstone.com/consultation-request/

What would happen to real estate and mortgage markets?

In other news: Townstone has an incredible 1% downpayment purchase program for eligible borrowers.

You put down 1%, the lender gives you an additional 2%, and the loan doesn't even have PMI (mortgage insurance)

As always, FREE 1 on 1 consultations available at: https://townstone.com/consultation-request/

Real Estate and Mortgage Market Updates!

Lack of housing inventory keeping home prices stable.

Upcoming casino in Chicago redesign, will it help or hurt?

Purchases and Cash-Out/Debt-Consolidation seem to be the name of the game lately.

Townstone is always expanding our product portfolio to make sure you have the loan that's the best fit for you and your family.

As always, FREE 1 on 1 consultations available at: https://townstone.com/consultation-request/

Tucker is out at FOX and Lemon is out at CNN, but Barry and Zach are still here for you at Townstone!

The spring purchase market is in full swing! It might be a good time to take another look at housing inventory that came to market this last month or two.

Rents (at least in Chicago) continue to rise! We're hearing from people with landlords asking for 30% or higher year-over-year increases!

Mortgage rates seem to have stabilized vs. the roller coaster we were dealing with at the start of the year, but is this new "normal" sustainable?

We continue to expand our menu of loan products and options, so be sure to contact us for your next purchase, refinance, home equity line, home equity loan, reverse mortgage, bank statement loan, investor loan, and more!

As always, FREE 1 on 1 consultations available at: https://townstone.com/consultation-request/