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Housing Virginia Newsletter
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Mortgage Rates Spike, then Retreat
Something that we all knew would eventually happen has begun. Mortgage rates are rising.
What we didn't expect was for rates to rise so fast and so quickly. Responding to a hint in late April from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that the Fed might begin to take its foot off the accelerator and ease off QE2, the market responded by driving rates up. From the low 3% range to the mid 4%, rates have jumped over 100 basis points in the last four months. The chart above shows the sharp rise since the beginning of the year.
Is it time to panic? No.
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VHC Recognizes Leadership Excellence at its Annual Awards Luncheon
For over thirty years, the Virginia Housing Coalition's Annual Awards event has been the gathering place to celebrate accomplishments, identify challenges, and encourage positive action in the affordable housing field. This year's event on June 20 was attended by 300 persons at the Greater Richmond Convention Center, and focused on three areas of accomplishment:
Legislative Leadership, Innovations in Leadership and the VHC Hall of Fame.
Legislative Leadership
Delegate Alfonso H. Lopez received the 2013 Legislative Leadership Award. He represents the 49th House District in Arlington and Fairfax Counties. Delegate Lopez led the effort in the General Assembly during both the 2012 and 2013 sessions to create the Housing Trust Fund, appropriate funds to it and legislate it into state code.
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SOURCEBOOK Update: Rental Demand is Driving Growth
Is strong rental housing demand fueling Virginia's housing recovery? During 2012, residential building permits issued increased to 2008 construction levels with a total of 27,278 permits issued. That is an increase of 5,874 permits above 2010 levels. Seventy nine percent of that increase was for multi-family housing. Single-family permits only grew by 1,046 units during the same period. It appears that investors are responding to strong market demand and demographic changes favoring multi-family housing options.
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2013 State of the Nation's Housing: Good News for Some; Not for All
Late last month, the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies released the 2013 State of the Nation's Housing. The report generally reflects the recovery that we are all seeing in housing from the depths of the last 5 years. You can watch the release event here. But not all families are benefiting from the rebound of the housing market - affordability continues to be a challenge, particularly for renters.
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Virginia Housing Credit Conference: Get the Low Registration Rate Until July 31
 Learn how to successfully utilize affordable housing tax credits in your projects and programs. Virginia's first Housing Credit Conference will convene on September 4-5 at the Westin Hotel in Richmond. Early registration rates are still available till the end of July. Conference details and a draft agenda are available at the VHC website.
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2013 Governor's Housing Conference Announces Keynote Presenters
With a Conference theme, Building Strong Economies, the 2013 Governor's Housing Conference will convene in Norfolk on November 20-22. National author Liz Murray will provide an inspirational focus. Her story is a triumph over adversity and a stunning example of the importance of dreaming big.
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