Whitney Minnich Real Estate and Community Updates

On this hot summer day, ice cream seems like the natural pick! Here's a list of where you can get free, or discounted, ice cream today to celebrate  National Ice Cream Day is here, which means some of your favorite ice cream chains are celebrating on Sunday, July 15 with special Ice Cream Day deals and discounts. Some shops are giving away free ice cream cones and scoops, while others have created an Ice Cream Day menu to mark the occasion. Go for a cone or a sundae, and pile on the toppings—for one day this week, your ice cream dreams are unlimited. And free (or discount) scoops is a big deal, because ice cream pulls in a lot of green in the United States, with the ice cream industry contributing $39 billion to the national economy and creating more than 188,000 jobs nationwide, according to the ice cream manufacturing and marketing group  International Dairy Foods Association . About 1.54 billion gallons of ice cream products were produced in the United States in 2015 ...

Delayed Ownership Could Exacerbate Wealth Disparities July 12, 2018 Millennials aren’t purchasing homes on the same timelines as previous generations, and that has some economists worried. The homeownership rate for millennials was 37 percent in 2015, which is about eight percentage points lower than Generation X and baby boomers when they were at the same age between 25 to 34, according to a new report released by the Urban Institute. Economists point to several factors for millennials’ delay into homeownership, including their delays to get married (being married increases probability of owning a home by 18 percentage points), rising student debt, delayed child bearing, and increasing rents that are making it more difficult to save for a down payment. But the Urban Institute’s report notes that such delays into ownership are sparking concern. Less educated young adults are falling further behind in homeownership, the report notes. The gap in homeownership rates...

Daily Mortgage Rate Update Rates for 7/12/2018 as of 8:00 AM. Rates are FLAT compared to 7/11 Market - 10 year treasury yield is FLAT today and at about 2.85%+     https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/?symbol=US10Y Assumptions: 30 day lock, on a purchase loan for a primary home, loan amount of $300,000 (75% loan-to-value) with taxes and insurance and with credit scores of 740+. APR is not the interest rate but reflects the rate with charges that are paid to get a loan.  Rates are subject to change without notice.  JUMBO pricing is based on 20% down, 6 months reserves, and a 550K loan amount. All other assumptions are the same. For more information and the latest market update  contact Evan Karr with Priority Home Lending .

Making Home a Palace for Pets Pet owners seem to spare little expense to keep their furry and feathered family members as happy as possible. Learn how designers, homebuilders, and developers are working to cater to your clients’ best friends July 2, 2018   by   Barbara Ballinger When you talk with clients looking to find the right house, condo, or apartment, you probably inquire about their cooking and entertaining needs, how important outdoor living is, and whether elderly relatives may move in someday. But there’s another question that savvy real estate professionals should pose: Are pets part of your family equation? In more and more cases, the answer is yes. In the American Pet Products Association’s 2017–2018 National Pet Owners Survey, 68 percent of U.S. households owned a pet, which works out to about 85 million families. Ownership is up from 56 percent in 1988, the first year the survey was conducted.  While 48 percent of all households ...

Loan Demand Takes Sudden Leap From Home Buyers July 11, 2018 © REALTOR® Magazine The number of homes for sale is growing in some markets and that may be the main factor behind the latest rise in mortgage applications, economists say. Mortgage applications for both home purchases and refinancings increased 2.5 percent last week on a seasonally adjusted basis, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported Wednesday. The rise was fueled entirely by an uptick in home purchase applications. Mortgage applications for home purchases surged 7 percent in the week and are now 8 percent higher than a year ago, the MBA reports. Abounding housing shortages have mostly kept a lid on any notable increases in home sales this summer, but that gradually may be changing. “Even though inventories continue to decline, they are doing so at a slower pace,” says Danielle Hale, chief economist at realtor.com®. “In other words, while buyers continue to see fewer homes available for ...

3 Vintage Kitchen Designs Making a Comeback Share July 11, 2018 Several vintage and retro elements from the 1960s or even 1930s are oozing back into kitchen design. Realtor.com®’s Jamie Wiebe recently highlighted a few of these comeback trends, including: Decorative flooring:  Vintage black-and-white and patterned tiling are making big statements in kitchens once again. Hardwood flooring may be the norm in new-home builds, but more renovators are opting for decorative flooring styles that were once common in their parents’ or grandparents’ homes. “Consumers are playing with their flooring by incorporating pattern and texture,” says Lauren Visco, a Chicago interior designer. And for those who want a more subtle vintage nod: “Upgrade to patterned porcelain tiles in neutral hues,” Visco says. “White and light-gray checkerboard tiling makes a subtle nod to retro chic.” Vintage appliances:  Retro refrigerators or vintage-inspired appliances are popping ...

How Long Does it Take to Build a Single-Family Home? July 10, 2018 Buyers who want to build a new single-family home may have a long wait. On average, the expected wait time until the house is ready to move in is about 7.5 months, according to Census Bureau data. This includes waiting for almost a month for the permit process to start and then 6.5 months to finish construction. Build times can vary, particularly if the home is built for sale or is custom-built. Houses for sale tended to take the shortest amount of time, averaging 6.9 months in 2017 from permit to completion. Houses that are custom-built by owners required the longest time, averaging 12.3 months. Of the single-family homes built in 2017, about 32 percent were sold before construction started; 29 percent were sold while under construction; 11 percent were sold during the month of completion; and 17 percent were sold after completion, according to the National Association of Home Builders’ analy...