New housing shortage has prices climbing - 2004-02-23
A decreasing supply of newly built homes in Howard County is pushing up prices of all homes higher, according to an annual report examining development within the county.

The mean price for single-family homes increased to $396,678 last year and the mean price for townhouses to $203,347, up 13.9 percent and 10.9 percent respectively from the previous study. The report indicated that low mortgage rates contributed to higher prices.
Read the full story at AP via Sunspot

Mortgage Rates Continue to Abate - 2004-02-23
Mortgage rates around the country decreased this week to their lowest levels in seven months, good news for prospective home buyers.

The average rate on benchmark 30-year mortgages fell to 5.58 percent, down from 5.66 percent last week, mortgage giant Freddie Mac said Thursday in its weekly nationwide survey of mortgage rates. This week's rate was the lowest since 5.52 percent for the week ending July 11.
Read the full story at Builder Online