February 2023 - Luxury Market Report for Placer County

I can help get you into your dream home without settling for anything less!

UWL offers One-Time Close New Construction for conventional loans.

Benefits

UWL is arming our partners to help more borrowers and first-time homebuyers make their first home or next home their dream home.

Builders don’t have to pay for the construction upfront, then sell the home to a borrower. They can create the borrower’s dream home and get a loan before construction even begins. Helping save time and money by only having to close once and covering one set of closing costs!

UWL’s process has a contractor approval component. Meaning we vet the contractor and obtain references to make sure they are credible. This helps give peace of mind to your borrower, that they have gone with a good option.

Other lenders require intense documentation, high-interest rates, and large down payments. UWL helps reduce the headaches, keep the project moving, create transparency and peace of mind for all parties involved, and offer the same great service on these loans, as we always do.

What is a One-Time Close New Construction loan?

A One-Time Close New Construction loan is a single-closing construction loan. The construction portion is short-term financing that is modified into permanent financing upon completion of the project. A single-closing construction mortgage can be closed as a purchase or a refinance.

What is a single closing?

A single closing construction loan is the combination of financing of the construction and the permanent mortgage. There is a single closing transaction that occurs prior to construction beginning.

Closing costs/fees that the borrower is responsible for are collected at closing. Funds are accessed through draws and there will be an initial draw at closing for proceeds to the contractor to begin the construction project.  

Call me with any questions, we’re here to help! Scott Rojo, Rojo Mortgage Team, 916-548-3942.

Mortgage Rates Fell Across the Board

The numbers: A dip in mortgage rates prompted mortgage demand to rise a seasonally adjusted 27.9%
As mortgage rates dropped across the board, demand for both purchases and refinancing increased. That pushed the market composite index up, a measure of mortgage application volume, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) said on Wednesday. 
The market index rose to 238.7 for the week ending Jan. 13, up 27.9% from a week earlier. A year ago, the index stood at 593.7.
Key details: The refinance index jumped 34.2% in the past week, but was down 81% compared to a year ago. 
The purchase index — which measures mortgage applications for the purchase of a home — rose by 24.7% from last week. 
Mortgage rates fell across the board.
The average contract rate for the 30-year mortgage for homes sold for $726,200 or less was 6.23% for the week ending January 13. That’s down from 6.42% the week before, the MBA said. 
For homes sold for over $726,200, the average rate for the 30-year was 6.08%.  

The big picture: All those buyers and homeowners waiting on the sidelines found their moment this past week, as a dip in rates provided an opportunity.
With rates expected to come down further, this trend of mortgage demand running hot may continue in the meantime. 
What are they saying? “Mortgage rates are now at their lowest level since September 2022, and about a percentage point below the peak mortgage rate last fall,” Mike Fratantoni, senior vice president and chief economist at the MBA, said.
“As we enter the beginning of the spring buying season, lower mortgage rates and more homes on the market will help affordability for first-time homebuyers,” he added.

2593 Aberdeen Lane, El Dorado Hills, CA 95762

Exceptional quality Highland View residence on a .55 acre private greenbelt lot, just a short stroll away from Murphy Park and across the street from an 8-mile hiking trail. Built by Signature Properties in 2001, this 3,371 square foot home showcases a main level master, an office, and three upstairs bedrooms. Over $100k was recently invested in energy-efficient upgrades, including solar, 3 Tesla Powerwall home batteries, solar heating for the pool, a new water heater, recirculating pump, and more.

As you enter, you are welcomed by the executive office (with up to 1 GBPS internet) and an elegant formal living and dining room with wood floors. The great room concept is ideal for entertaining and includes the kitchen, dining nook, and family room with vaulted ceilings. The gourmet kitchen offers a spacious prep island and top-of-the-line stainless appliances, including a Wolf gas cooktop, dual ovens, and a Bosch dishwasher.

The luxurious and relaxing main-level master suite features a sliding glass door to access the backyard, a spa-like bathroom, and two walk-in closets. The laundry room is conveniently located near the master bedroom, guest bathroom, and a 3-car garage (with EV wiring). Upstairs, a full bathroom is centrally located near the remaining bedrooms. All three bedrooms boast large walk-in closets.

Retreat to the exceptional backyard that showcases a stunning swimming pool with a water feature, expansive concrete patio, mature landscaping, planting beds, fruit trees, a covered pergola, space for possible RV parking, and a deck that overlooks the horseshoe/bocce ball court. The home is adjacent to a greenbelt with a seasonal creek, ensuring a feeling of privacy while enjoying the backyard.

Highland View is a highly desirable neighborhood that allows for an ideal El Dorado Hills lifestyle, with low HOA dues, no Mello Roos, and award-winning schools (Oak Ridge High School).

Gloomy Economy Ahead

Top economists' outlook on the global economy for 2023 is "gloomy," with expectations of weak growth and a likely recession, according to a World Economic Forum report published on the opening day of Davos.
The World Economic Forum summarized the thoughts of some top economists in its January 2023 Chief Economists Outlook, released to coincide with the group's annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, which kicked off on Monday.
"Although there are some grounds for optimism, such as easing inflationary pressures, many aspects of the outlook remain gloomy," the report said, citing "continuing economic uncertainty and policy challenges of historic proportions."
Close to two-thirds of the 22 chief economists surveyed by the WEF said they thought that a global recession was likely in 2023, with 18% of them considering it "extremely likely."
"Global growth prospects remain anemic, and global recession risk high," the report said.
But the respondents — who came from a pool of experts at finance and business giants like UBS, Google, Microsoft, and Bank of America — expect to see huge regional variations in economic growth over the next year.
All of the economists said that they expected weak or very weak growth in Europe and 91% said they expected it in the US, while this figure was less than half for the Middle East, North Africa, South Asia, China, and East Asia and the Pacific. More than half of respondents said that they expected high inflation in Europe, compared to just 5% expecting to see it in China.
The WEF said that this likely reflected Europe's high energy prices, increases in interest rates, and "sluggish demand." In contrast, the gradual reversal of China's zero-COVID policies could boost the country's economy, though it may stint production if more people get infected with the virus.
Companies including Amazon, Goldman Sachs, and Salesforce have already announced layoffs this year, and the chief economists expect job cuts like these to continue. 86% percent of the survey respondents said they expect multinational businesses to cut operational expenses, with 78% expecting workers to be laid off. Most economists said they expected companies to pass higher costs onto customers, too.
But despite the largely pessimistic outlook, the report highlighted how some of the dominant concerns in the global economy currently could weaken over the course of the year.
Two-thirds of the respondents said they expected the cost-of-living crisis to become less severe by the end of 2023, while close to two-thirds said they were optimistic that the energy crisis will have begun to improve by the end of the year. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, however, forecast in December that Europe's energy crisis would worsen and likely last for years.

December 2022 - Luxury Market Report for Placer County