Napa Mortgage News

Spring Forward...Property taxes in U.S.....Rubiks Cube and Kiwanis 5k photos

March 16th, 2018 1:48 PM by Dale DiGennaro

After that being said.....

Let's take a look at property taxes in various states throughout the U.S.

Depending on where you live, property taxes can be a small inconvenience or a major burden. The average American household spends $2,197 on property taxes for their homes each year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, and residents of the 27 states with vehicle property taxes shell out another $436. Considering these figures and the rising amount of debt in America, it should come as no surprise that more than $14 billion in property taxes go unpaid each year, the National Tax Lien Association has found.

CLICK HERE for the details by state! Very interesting.....

Cubic Conundrum.....

In 1974, Hungarian architecture professor Erno Rubik invents what is now known as the Rubik's cube. It has 43,252,003,274,489,856,000 possible combinations, or 43 quintillion. Since its introduction in 1980, 400 million have been sold, and currently global sales are running at 15 million/year. The world record for the quickest solution is 4.59 seconds, and it took Mr. Rubik more than a month to initially solve his puzzle.

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THINKING OF SELLING OR EVEN DOING A REFINANCE...
Our "Home Price Index" will take into consideration your original purchase price & date of home purchase to determine...

according to the appreciation rate for the region you live in...whether it is a good time for you to refinance now or....if you are getting ready to list your home...what a reasonable value for your area would be. You can also sign up to receive a quarterly report of your homes value based on the up to date analysis of your region.

Just a couple of ways that Custom Lending keeps you informed of our changing market place so you can make the best financial decisions for you and your family!

Job Gains Surge

A wide range of events influenced mortgage rates this week, including important labor market data, a European Central Bank meeting, and government policy changes. Some were positive and some were negative. The net effect was mortgage rates finished the week higher.

An upside surprise in job gains in Friday's Employment report was negative for mortgage rates, but weaker than expected wage growth limited the damage. Against a consensus forecast of 205,000, the economy gained an enormous 313,000 jobs in February, the largest total since July 2016. In addition, upward revisions added 54,000 jobs to the results for prior months. Construction firms added 61,000 workers, the highest monthly increase in nearly 11 years.

Partially offsetting the strong job gains was a shortfall in wage growth. Average hourly earnings were 2.6% higher than a year ago, down from an annual rate of 2.8% last month, and well below the consensus of 2.9%.

Also notable in the Employment data was that the unemployment rate was flat at 4.1% for the fifth straight month, which was above the consensus for a decline to 4.0%. However, this was viewed as an indicator of strength because the higher reading was due to a massive 806,000 people entering the labor force in a sign of confidence in the labor market.

Last week, President Trump took a firm stance on imposing global tariffs on all steel and aluminum imported into the U.S. Uncertainty about how other countries would react caused investors to shift to safer assets, which was good for mortgage rates. However, following resistance from many top political leaders and economists, Trump eased his stance this week, which was mildly negative for mortgage rates.

Thursday's European Central Bank (ECB) meeting contained good news for mortgage rates. Although the ECB set the stage to wind down its bond purchase program, this was not a surprise to most investors. Overall, the comments from ECB President Draghi were viewed as a little more dovish than expected, meaning in favor of a slower pace of tightening monetary policy. As a result, global bond yields declined on Thursday, including U.S. mortgage rates.

Looking ahead, The Consumer Price Index (CPI) will come out on Tuesday. CPI is a widely followed monthly inflation report that looks at the price change for goods and services. Retail Sales will be released on Wednesday. Consumer spending accounts for about 70% of economic activity in the U.S., and the retail sales data is a key indicator. Housing Starts will come out on Friday. In addition, there will be Treasury auctions on Monday and Tuesday which could influence mortgage rates.

Our Greater Napa chapter of Kiwanis "Morning Club" in charge of the Kiwanis 5K in conjunction with the Napa Valley Marathon. Current president Karen Smith in red coat on right and past president Anne Schramm owner of Sylvan Learning Center showing front and center in her Turquoise running shoes!

A BIG Thank You to event coordinators Mike Scully (aka#6243 below & black SF Hat in top photo) and Bill Herbert(R-back in top photo)!

Awesome job and much appreciated!

"Thank you for always trusting in us to do the best for you and your family and please feel free to call me anytime you have questions. I will be happy to share with you whatever information you may need!"