I’m not a huge fan of Zillow.com. I feel that the Zestimate’s from Zillow are so often out of line.  I do, however, use Zillow.com to analyze trends.  I find that Zillow’s analysis of increase/decrease in value is usually well done.  The limitation of Zillow, of course, is that it doesn’t have the ability to see the condition of the property.  It can give a range of values — targeting the center of the range as the Zestimate.  But it is unable to determine whether the property has updates and/or luxury appointments.  

Recently, RisMedia wrote an article about how Zillow has noted record-breaking traffic and loan request activity on its site.  

Consumers are interested in refinancing their St. Louis homes.  And consumers are buying homes.  We’ve got tons of traffic on our listings.  For a great lender, please contact Matt Eversgerd at First Integrity Mortgage Services at 314-620-7227.

For more information about lending, please give me a call or visit my St. Louis Home Guide website.  

Russell
314-267-2636 

RISMEDIA, March 4, 2009-Amidst the announcement of President Barack Obama’s housing plan, and with mortgage rates reaching historic lows, real estate website Zillow.com reports record-breaking traffic and loan request activity within its free marketplace for custom mortgage quotes, Zillow(R) Mortgage Marketplace.

Over the past three months, as mortgage rates dropped to their lowest levels in years, consumer interest in refinancing soared. More than 70,000 loan requests were submitted from borrowers on Zillow Mortgage Marketplace in the December through February time period, with the average number of daily loan requests up 142% in this same period versus November 2008. Refinancing requests accounted for more than 60% of all consumer loan requests over this three-month period.

Meanwhile, increased consumer interest in refinancing and dropping home prices resulted in a series of record traffic months for Zillow.com. February traffic reached 7.9 million unique users, which is up 60% year-over-year.

“It’s been fascinating to watch homeowners and potential buyers respond so quickly to these record low mortgage rates and to the economic news of the day. We saw borrowers react quickly when rates dove below 5% in early February; loan requests rose 16% compared to the previous week,” said Lloyd Frink, Zillow president. “Likewise, when President Obama announced his refinancing plan in late February, loan requests rose 56% over the average daily rate and remained at higher levels for several days, even though there was no movement in rates. Clearly, homeowners, and those seeking mortgages, were interested in what this plan could mean for them.”

Zillow Mortgage Marketplace is the new business arm of Zillow that aims to transform the process of obtaining a mortgage and finding the best rates by adding transparency and competition to an area that hasn’t before existed. Borrowers can shop for loans anonymously and get an unlimited number of real customized rates directly from lenders within this open and free marketplace. On average, each consumer loan request receives 14 customized loan quotes from lenders, with the first quote coming within seconds.

Interactive mortgage rate charts show the most current mortgage rates being offered on Zillow Mortgage Marketplace, making it easy for borrowers to see when rates drop and get a sense of a rate they may be able to lock in.

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For answers to all of your St. Louis real estate questions, visit Russell Nolting’s St. Louis home listings website.

  The first step to consider is to call a professional.  Ryan Nolting, at Wells Fargo, may be your answer for a refinance of your St Louis home mortgage.  He will analyze your unique situation to determine if a refinance is a good idea.  Ryan can be reached at 314-267-4300.  

  Another concern homeowners have is in regards to the value of their home.  Do I have enough equity in a declining market to refinance?  If you'd like a free anaysis of your St. Louis home value, we can help -- just follow this link.

  If you have plans to pay off your mortgage in the next few years it makes no sense for you, as you will not be able to recover the re-financing fees in time. Same thing goes if you are planning to move in the next few years.

  If you are planning to stay in your home for many years and currently have an Adjustable Rate Mortgage, then refinancing to a 30-Year Fixed is a very good option for you. Refinancing may not lower your monthly payments by all that much, but you may sleep better knowing that those payments will never go up.

  Another good reason to refinance is if you are currently paying a very high rate. A very good rule of thumb is to calculate your costs and make sure that you can earn back the roughly $2,000 in fees that you will pay, within two to three years.

  Two other things to consider are that if you are paying less interest over time, you will pay more taxes. Also, money that you pay in refinancing fees could be invested instead. Think of the return on that sum you could earn over thirty years!

  Of course, I'm never too busy to talk to you about your real estate and refinancing needs, just call me at 314.267.2636   Russell