Bankers Field Services

Rates for 30-year home loans have inched up, hitting 5 percent for the first time in nearly a month after bond yields increased. The medial sum rate on a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage was 5 percent this week, up from 4.92 percent a week earlier, mortgage company Freddie Mac said Thursday. It was the highest average inasmuch as the week of Sept. 24, when rates averaged 5.04 percent. While above the record low of 4.78 percent hit in the spring, rates are still attractive for people looking to purchase a home or refinance.

There were few major surprises in the economic news this week, and little change in the stock market. While there was a great deal of daily volatility, mortgage rates ended the week unchanged. A flood of housing market data was released during the week, and most of it reflected improvement in the sector. The biggest unexpected news came from the September Existing Home Sales report, which jumped 9% from August to the highest level since July 2007.

By Dan Walters dwalters@sacbee.com Published: Friday, Oct. 23, 2009 – 12:00 am | Page 3A Widespread public disdain for a dysfunctional Legislature – just 13 percent of voters approved of the job it was doing in a recent poll – has spawned a rhetorical game in political, academic and media circles that goes something like this: “Everything would be OK if only they would just (fill in the blank).” Of course, the phrases offered to fill in that blank vary widely, depending on the player’s ideological or cultural orientation.

Illinois foreclosure homes for sale have been rising faster in number in suburban counties than in metro areas, based on an analysis of foreclosure data in September and in the whole third quarter of this year. While foreclosure postings increased in Cook County in the July to September quarter by only 6 percent over last year, the year-over-year rates of increases in Kendall County, Kane County and in DeKalb County were 693 percent, 103 percent and 169 percent, respectively.