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...About three-quarters of US homeowners have mortgages charging less than 4 per cent interest, according to JPMorgan Chase research....
...And just yesterday, the national association of homebuilders survey showed the first decline in homebuilder confidence in seven months, as customer traffic fell....
...“Even if they are not being built directly for first-time buyers, existing homeowners who move up are freeing up properties for new buyers,” Ms Fisher says....
...Gone are the days when 125 per cent mortgages were the norm, or when homeowners could get so-called “liar loans” where borrowers self-certified their income....
...The homebuilders’ index is by far the strongest sub-sector of the S&P 500 so far this year, up almost 70 per cent....
...The homeowner gets the reduction in principal and, in many cases, a lower mortgage rate....
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