Well, that’s it. Summer is over. OK, not technically for another week or two, but now that we’re past Labor Day, the kids are back to school, and that means — clutter. Organizing expert Marie Kondo provided some great tips to the Huffington Post on how to avoid the fairly natural clutter that occurs when the days get back to rushed breakfasts, and running the kids back and forth to various extra-curricular activities. Marie is the author of The Life-Changing Magic Of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art Of Decluttering And Organizing.

This blog recently reported on the tremendous up-tick in investment in housing by foreigners; however, at the same time that increased investment is happening, foreign governments are cutting back. Now, foreign governments typically own very little property; however, their central banks invest heavily in mortgage-backed securities, as well as agency-backed securities (i.e., Fannie, Freddie, and FHLBS securities). It’s unclear if the current cut-backs are just a reaction to the slowing of growth in China, or represent something deeper.

Last month, this blog reported that availability of mortgage credit, as benchmarked by the mortgage credit availability index set to 100 for March, 2012, had increased 0.5% month over month. It continues to set new records, hitting 126.1 in August (it was 116.4 for July when we previously reported). As with last month, the increases are chiefly led by availability in the jumbo mortgage market, so if you’re looking to buy big, now might well be the time. The upcoming jobs report is expected to tip the Feds hand one way or the other with a rate increase, but right now, credit availability is the best it’s been since June, 2011 — the extent of historical data.

The second quarter of 2015 was a banner one for the mortgage industry, with the highest level of originations since Q4 2007. The actual figure, $395 billion, is up $65 billion quarter-over-quarter, and $98 billion year-over-year. Forbes goes in-depth on the market share of the top 5 banks, which is notable primarily because their share has shrunk dramatically over the last few years, from 53% to 35%. That’s good news for borrowers, as it means you have more choices from banks in good financial shape.

From the 2009 bottom of the market, single-family housing starts are up slightly more than 100%. Multi-unit buildings, on the other hand, are up a whopping 466%. Although those numbers feel out of whack at first glance, it likely makes sense in this post recovery period. In 2005, home ownership had grown to over 69%, which is arguably too high. Since the crash, there’s a growing need for rental properties. That, combined with the movement into the cities from suburbia, starts to make these numbers make sense.

The folks over at credit.com have written quite an extensive article on the impact of getting a mortgage pre-approval on your credit rating. The short answer is, they have an impact, but it’s quite small. For more details, the article is well worth the read, as they go into the difference between hard inquiries and soft inquiries, the impact and what constitutes each, and they go on to provide links to different credit scoring models that lenders use, as well as the standard “how to check my credit”.

If you’ve done any research into home ownership, then you’ve undoubtedly run across the various ways that making your payment differently can impact your lifetime cost (in terms of interest), and how long it takes to pay down your mortgage. Typical schemes include making one extra payment per year, or dividing your payment in half and paying the same amount each month, but in two installments. Fox News explores the impact of taking it one step farther, and making weekly payments.

Rumors have been flying fast-and-furious the last few months about when the Fed is finally going to raise interest rates. With the recent turmoil in global stock markets and China in particular, the future of Fed decisions is even more uncertain. But according to a Reuters poll, it probably doesn’t matter. The housing market is doing so well, that a Fed rate hike is unlikely to dampen enthusiasm. The consensus is that home prices will rise 5% this year, and that should be sufficient to keep the market buoyant. 

This blog just reported yesterday on the banner year it’s been for foreign investors in U.S. real estate, and for China in particular. Coincidentally, Sam Van Horebeek, a director at a U.S. real estate advisory firm based in China wrote about the effect of the Chinese stock market meltdown on interest in the U.S. real estate sector. Fully 50% of those they interviewed are considering acquiring overseas real estate — and it’s not just the mega-rich, it’s the “mass-affluent”, a group almost as large as the entire population of the U.S.

Just done reviewing the 2015 National Association of Realtors’ Profile of Home Buying Activity of International Clients. There are definitely a few interesting statistics in there. For example, while the number of units sold international slightly declined, the average purchase price was up — and at $499,600, if you’re a real estate agent who wants to up his average price, you may want to target foreign buyers. Also, for the first time, Chinese buyers surpassed Canadians, purchasing $28.6 billion worth of property.