The american dream is still alive!
In 2000 (a very normal housing year without a bubble), with virtually no discussion of it in the media or in the academic community, 67 percent of Americans lived as a homeowning household. Then came the easy credit conditions which fueled home buying beyond normal and the ownership rate rose to 69 percent. But the subsequent bust brought the ownership rate down to today’s 66 percent. Not all age groups had similar experiences throughout this cycle. The very young were mildly impacted. The very old did not on average feel any pain – at least according to the statistics, though no doubt there were some retirees who painfully lost a home to a foreclosure. The big impact was felt among people in their 30’s, who have much the same homeownership rate today as back in 2000, well before the bubble. It is also this group where there is potential for re-entering into the homeownership market in the near future. Also note the general higher ownership rate as people get older and more mature and presumably become more responsible. Note the very high ownership rate among the 65-and-over population, who would have for the large part already paid off their mortgages.
Posted at 09:43AM Jan 31, 2012 by Lori Kehoe in General | Comments[0]
New home construction gathers momentum
New home construction slowed slightly in December after a strong November showing, but was still much more active than a year earlier.
Posted at 07:51AM Jan 26, 2012 by Lori Kehoe in General | Comments[0]
Home sales show slow progress
As expected, existing-home sales continued their slow rebound, increasing 5.0% in December to an annualized 4.61 million units. Fourth-quarter sales overall were strong, and the market finished out the year with 3 consecutive months of gains, resulting in a final yearly increase for 2011 of 1.7%.
"The pattern of home sales in recent months demonstrates a market in recovery," said Lawrence Yun, chief economist at the National Association of Realtors. "Record low mortgage interest rates, job growth, and bargain home prices are giving more consumers the confidence they need to enter the market."
Total housing inventory dropped 9.2% to 2.38 million existing homes for sale, the lowest number since March 2005. That figure, representing a 6.2-month supply at the current sales pace, is down from a 7.2-month supply in November, reflecting the typical shrinkage of inventory in the winter. Home prices remain the major weak spot, with the median price declining 2.5% from its level at the end of 2010.
Homebuilding data are mixed
New residential construction projects in December were down 4.1% to 657,000 units (annualized). However, starts were up 24.9% over the past 12 months—continuing a trend of positive readings over the last 7 months. Multifamily-structure starts (including apartment buildings) pulled down the overall figure in the most recent report, but, on a brighter note, single-family starts, which make up a majority of housing starts and were hit hard by the housing downturn, increased by 4.4%, the best monthly gain since June. Total permits totaled 679,000, down slightly from November but 7.8% better than a year ago. In fact, year-ago comparisons have been trending positive for 8 straight months, indicating that single-family construction is finding its footing.
[Read More]Posted at 09:23AM Jan 22, 2012 by Lori Kehoe in General | Comments[0]
Home builders more optimistic as economic outlook improves
WASHINGTON – Homebuilders are growing less pessimistic about the housing market, despite tighter lending standards that have slowed home sales.[Read More]
Posted at 09:32AM Jan 19, 2012 by Lori Kehoe in General | Comments[0]
Mortgage rates hit another record low
Rates have fallen 0.9% since the beginning of the year. For a homeowner with a $200,000 mortgage, that means a savings of $1,200 a year, said Frank Nothaft, Freddie's chief economist.
With rates at or below 4% for the last eight weeks, home sales are getting a boost, Nothaft added. Existing homes sold at their fastest pace since January last month, according to the National Association of Realtors, and new home sales edged higher in November as well.
Where homes are affordable
Meanwhile, rates for 15-year mortgages remained unchanged, matching last week's record low of 3.21%.
"We've entered the holiday lull with nothing much happening to change rates one way or the other," said Greg McBride, senior financial analyst for Bankrate.com.
Mortgages should remain affordable deep into 2012, he added. As the European debt crisis and sluggish U.S. economy keep investors focused on finding safe havens for their cash, demand for U.S. Treasury notes should remain high. That drives down their yields, which mortgage rates closely track.
"For well-qualified buyers, interest rates should be no impediment to home buying in 2012," said McBride.
Refinancers also are pouncing on the bargain rates.
According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, about 80% of all mortgage applications last week came from existing homeowners looking to refinance their old loans into more affordable ones.
[Read More]Posted at 01:21PM Jan 18, 2012 by Lori Kehoe in General | Comments[0]
Home selling secret #2
Posted at 08:04AM Jan 13, 2012 by Lori Kehoe in General | Comments[0]
Foreclosures fall to lowest level since 2007
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Foreclosure filings and repossessions fell to their lowest level since 2007 last year. Total filings of default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions were down 33% for the year to 2.7 million, according to RealtyTrac, the online marketer of foreclosed properties. One in every 69 homes had at least one foreclosure filing during the year, while 804,000 homes were repossessed. That's a significant improvement from the peaks reached in 2010 -- when one in every 45 households received a foreclosure filing and 1.05 million homes were repossessed -- and the lowest levels seen since 2007, the report said. While the declines seem like good news for the housing market, where a flood of foreclosed homes has depressed home prices, much of it is due to processing delays caused by fall-out from the "robo-signing" scandal that broke in late 2010. During the year, banks spent more time making sure paperwork was legal and proper, creating a backlog in the foreclosure pipeline. As a result, the average time it took to process a foreclosure climbed to 348 days during the fourth quarter, up from 305 days a year earlier. "Foreclosures were in full delay mode in 2011, resulting in a dramatic drop in foreclosure activity for the year," said Brandon Moore, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac.
owever, Moore said there were "strong signs" during the second half of the year that lenders are working through foreclosure backlogs in certain markets. He expects foreclosure activity to rise above 2011's level but remain below the peak hit in 2010.
Low rates offer some help for homeowners
Early in 2011, many forecasters were predicting a wave of foreclosures due to resetting adjustable-rate mortgages but low mortgage rates helped many borrowers refinance into more affordable loans and keep their homes, said Moore.
Refinancings accounted for 71% of all mortgage lending in 2011, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The government helped as well, through efforts like the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP), which made refinancing easier for borrowers who owe more on their mortgage than their homes are worth.
Turning foreclosures into rentals
Government foreclosure prevention programs, including HARP and the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), have started about 5.5 million mortgage modifications since April 2009, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
"Programs like HAMP and HARP have definitely made a dent in the foreclosure problem," said Moore "However, they are certainly not living up to their billing of preventing several million foreclosures. In addition, many [HAMP] homeowners fall back into foreclosure later on."
Of course, there were still plenty of factors working against homeowners in 2011, including the continued erosion in home prices. The S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index fell 3.4% over the 12 months ended October 31. Falling prices rob homeowners of home equity, which they can tap if they need emergency cash.
Foreclosure hot spots
Hot spots for foreclosures remain mostly in "bubble states," where speculative investors helped drive up home prices beyond their fundamental values during the mid-2000s housing boom.
Nevada, where one out of every 16 households received some kind of default notice during the year, was the worst hit of all, a distinction it has held for the fifth consecutive year.
Foreclosure free ride: 3 years, no payments
Arizona had the second highest foreclosure rate and California came in third. Florida, which had been running neck-and-neck with the other "Sand States" in past years, fell to seventh, behind Georgia, Utah and Michigan.
Among metro areas, Las Vegas suffered from the highest foreclosure rate in 2011. California put seven cities in the top 10, led by Stockton in the second slot. Other cities in the top 10 included Phoenix, which finished sixth, and Reno, Nev. was eighth.
Posted at 07:25AM Jan 12, 2012 by Lori Kehoe in General | Comments[0]
Sell your home fast secret #1
Sell your home fast secret #1[Read More]
Posted at 06:10AM Jan 05, 2012 by Lori Kehoe in General | Comments[0]
Home prices drop for 2nd straight month, survey shows
U.S. home prices fell in most major cities for the second straight month, further evidence that the housing recovery will be bumpy.
The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index released Tuesday showed prices dropped in October from September in 19 of the 20 cities tracked.
Prices in a majority of cities declined for the second straight month, reflecting the typically fall slowdown after the peak buying season. Prior to that, prices had risen for five consecutive months in at least half of the cities tracked.
The Case-Shiller index covers half of all U.S. homes. It measures prices compared with those in January 2000 and creates a three-month moving average. The monthly data are not seasonally adjusted.
Posted at 06:10AM Jan 04, 2012 by Lori Kehoe in General | Comments[0]
Fixed mortgage rates rise above record lows
Average on the 30-year home loan increased to 3.95 % from 3.91 %
[Read More]Posted at 10:16AM Jan 02, 2012 by Lori Kehoe in General |
