Philadelphia Real Estate and Beyond September 23, 2011

Philadelphia Real Estate and Beyond September 23, 2011

Philadelphia Named Walk Friendly City– Philadelphia was named a Walk Friendly Community by the Pedistrian and Bicylc Information Center (part of the University of North Carolina’s Highway Safety Research Center) for its recent efforts to encourage walking.

Philadelphia Real Estate Blog – Walk Friendly Philadelphia

The designation comes from the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center, which is part of the University of North Carolina’s Highway Safety Research Center. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration and FedEx, Walk Friendly Communities is a nation-wide program that gives bronze, silver, gold and platinum honor designations to applicant communities. So far, 21 communities have won the designation. Philadelphia, one of 10 communities honored this time, got a silver award. (PlanPhilly)

The Federal Reserve’s Bond Buying Decision Sends Mortgage Rates To ALL TIME LOWS – Bankrate said the Federal Open Market Committee seems to be taking direct aim at mortgage rates by shifting $400 billion from short-term holdings into long-term government bonds. The program, which begins Oct. 3 and runs through June, will involve longer-term Treasury securities with remaining maturities of six years to 30 years, and will be financed through the sale of shorter-term Treasury’s with maturities of three years or less. “This program should put downward pressure on longer-term interest rates and help make broader financial conditions more accommodative,” the FOMC said in a statement following its two-day meeting. (HousingWire)

FHFA U.S. Home Prices Continue 4-month Price Gain – Home prices in the U.S. rose 0.8 percent between June and July, marking the fourth consecutive monthly increase, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) said Thursday. The agency’s House Price Index (HPI) has been trending upward since April of this year. That string of gains is coming off a streak of declines that was three times as long. Prior to April, FHFA’s HPI had been on a slippery downward slope for 12 straight months, going back to May 2010. The federal agency’s index is calculated using purchase prices of houses backing mortgages that have been sold to or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. (www.DSNews.com)

Philadelphia Real Estate Blog – Buying Home Safer Than Gold

Buying Real Estate Safer Than Gold – The results of a biannual survey, released this week by real estate search and marketing portal Trulia, found that 80 percent of homeowners plan to buy another home, and that most survey participants view homeownership, and placing money in a 401(k) or other retirement account, as the best long-term investments. Market research firm Harris Interactive conducted the survey, which drew responses from 1,392 homeowners and 758 renters, from Aug. 30, 2011, to Sept. 1, 2011. (www.InmanNews.com)

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Blog post compliments of CenterCityTeam’s Philadelphia Real Estate Blog

Frank L. DeFazio, Esquire
Prudential Fox & Roach Realtors – Society Hill
530 Walnut Street, Suite 260
Philadelphia, PA 19106
215.521.1623  Direct
610.636.4364  Cellular
888.308.1148  Fax
[email protected]
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