Nationally, asking prices on for-sale homes rose 10.7 percent
year-over-year in June, according to the Trulia Price Monitor. Even
excluding foreclosures, prices jumped 11.4 percent year-over-year, signaling
that the current rise in prices is not primarily driven by the shift away from
foreclosure to non-distressed homes for sale. However, asking prices will
eventually slow down as mortgage rates rise, inventory expands, and investor
demand falls.
Nationally, asking home prices bottomed in February 2012 – but the
turnaround has been uneven. Prices first rebounded two years ago in San Jose,
Phoenix, Denver, Miami, and a few other housing markets where job growth or
bargain buying started boosting prices earlier. Meanwhile, prices continued to
fall in several East Coast and Midwest markets until three to six months ago.
Now with the housing recovery in full swing, asking prices rose in 99 of the
100 largest metros. Among these recently bottoming markets, prices rose more
than 7 percent in Edison-New Brunswick, NJ, Chicago, Lake County-Kenosha
County, IL-WI, and Baltimore.
Source: Trulia
Showing posts with label Foreclosure. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Foreclosure. Show all posts
Monday, July 15, 2013
Monday, July 1, 2013
Forecast Points to Steady Price Growth Led by California
When it comes to
price appreciation, California markets are expected to continue leading growth
over the next year, while certain markets concentrated in the Northeast should
see a decline in home values, according to Veros Real Estate Solutions' most
recent forecast ending June 1, 2014. The company's forecast covers 969
counties, 324 metro areas, and 13,502 zip codes.
Source: DS News
Source: DS News
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Pending Sales at Strongest Pace Since 2006
Pending home sales rose in May to the highest level since late 2006, implying a possible spark as mortgage interest rates began to rise, according to the National Association of REALTORS®.
The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, increased 6.7 percent to 112.3 in May from a downwardly revised 105.2 in April, and is 12.1 percent above May 2012 when it was 100.2. Contract activity is at its strongest pace since December 2006, when it reached 112.8. Also, pending sales have been above year-ago levels for the past 25 months.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said there may be a fence-jumping effect. “Even with limited choices, it appears some of the rise in contract signings could be from buyers wanting to take advantage of current affordability conditions before mortgage interest rates move higher,” he said. “This implies a continuation of double-digit price increases from a year earlier, with a strong push from pent-up demand.”
Regionally, the index went unchaged in the Northeast, but is 14.3 percent above a year ago. In the Midwest, it jumped 10.2 percent to 115.5 in May and is 22.2 percent higher than May 2012. Pending home sales in the South rose 2.8 percent and 16 percent in the West.
Source: NAR
The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, increased 6.7 percent to 112.3 in May from a downwardly revised 105.2 in April, and is 12.1 percent above May 2012 when it was 100.2. Contract activity is at its strongest pace since December 2006, when it reached 112.8. Also, pending sales have been above year-ago levels for the past 25 months.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said there may be a fence-jumping effect. “Even with limited choices, it appears some of the rise in contract signings could be from buyers wanting to take advantage of current affordability conditions before mortgage interest rates move higher,” he said. “This implies a continuation of double-digit price increases from a year earlier, with a strong push from pent-up demand.”
Regionally, the index went unchaged in the Northeast, but is 14.3 percent above a year ago. In the Midwest, it jumped 10.2 percent to 115.5 in May and is 22.2 percent higher than May 2012. Pending home sales in the South rose 2.8 percent and 16 percent in the West.
Source: NAR
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Wells Fargo, Citigroup Halt Foreclosure Sales
Wells Fargo and Citigroup have temporarily halted foreclosure sales in several states, taking precautions after a federal regulator released new guidance on minimum standards for foreclosure sales.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) recently released the new standards. The OCC’s directive mostly consists of 13 questions banks need to ask themselves before selling a home in foreclosure, such as whether the borrower is protected from foreclosure by bankruptcy or if the borrower is in an active loan modification plan.
JPMorgan had also mostly stopped its foreclosure sales after the OCC’s standards were released, but has since resumed sales.
Wells Fargo, the nation’s largest mortgage originator, has seen a dramatic drop in foreclosure sales while significantly decreasing the number of sales it’s processing. For example, foreclosure sales by Wells Fargo in California, Nevada, Arizona, Oregon, and Washington plummeted from 349 a day in April to less than 10 a day, according to Foreclosure Radar, a real estate monitoring firm based in California.
"Wells Fargo has temporarily postponed certain foreclosure sales while we study the revised guidance from the OCC," a Wells Fargo spokeswoman confirmed for American Banker. Citibank officials also confirmed the reason behind their halt in sales was to carefully review the new guidance.
"The OCC did not direct a slowdown or pausing," says OCC spokesman Bryan Hubbard. "However, if servicers are not certain they are meeting these standards, pausing foreclosures is a responsible and productive step."
Source: “Wells, Citi Halt Most Foreclosure Sales as OCC Ratchets Up Scrutiny,” American Banker (May 17, 2013)
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) recently released the new standards. The OCC’s directive mostly consists of 13 questions banks need to ask themselves before selling a home in foreclosure, such as whether the borrower is protected from foreclosure by bankruptcy or if the borrower is in an active loan modification plan.
JPMorgan had also mostly stopped its foreclosure sales after the OCC’s standards were released, but has since resumed sales.
Wells Fargo, the nation’s largest mortgage originator, has seen a dramatic drop in foreclosure sales while significantly decreasing the number of sales it’s processing. For example, foreclosure sales by Wells Fargo in California, Nevada, Arizona, Oregon, and Washington plummeted from 349 a day in April to less than 10 a day, according to Foreclosure Radar, a real estate monitoring firm based in California.
"Wells Fargo has temporarily postponed certain foreclosure sales while we study the revised guidance from the OCC," a Wells Fargo spokeswoman confirmed for American Banker. Citibank officials also confirmed the reason behind their halt in sales was to carefully review the new guidance.
"The OCC did not direct a slowdown or pausing," says OCC spokesman Bryan Hubbard. "However, if servicers are not certain they are meeting these standards, pausing foreclosures is a responsible and productive step."
Source: “Wells, Citi Halt Most Foreclosure Sales as OCC Ratchets Up Scrutiny,” American Banker (May 17, 2013)
Monday, June 24, 2013
We're Forever Seeing Bubbles
The recent jump in home prices (near record month-over-month and year-over-year increases reported for May by the National Association of Realtors) has led to speculation that the rapid surge in home prices could be the sign of a new housing bubble similar to the one that led to the Great Recession. Is it? The not-so-short answer is, not yet.
Through May the median price of an existing single-family home has risen by double-digits for seven of the last eight months (and in the eighth, the year-over-year increase was 9.4 percent). For comparison’s sake, note that in the run-up to the collapse in 2006, the median price of an existing single-family home rose by double-digits year-over-year for 11 straight months.
An increase in prices itself does not signal a bubble. An unsustainable increase, not supported by other data, however, would. In the run-up to the 2006 collapse, the higher prices—which had been trending up for four years—led to a sharp uptick in construction wholly unsupported by demographics.
Despite the fact we still theoretically have more potential sellers than buyers, which should drive prices down, the inventory of homes listed for sale has remained low. That low inventory, combined with low interest rates keeping affordability high, has driven prices up.
Many analysts contend the current prices are justified by low rates, which keep home affordable even as prices rise. This would suggest that as rates rise, prices will move in the opposite direction, a replay of the post-2006 economy. That’s not though what history tells us. If prices fall in response to higher rates, it would mean market behavior has changed, a phenomenon for which we may not be prepared.
For more...see We're-forever-seeing-bubbles-2013-06-21
Through May the median price of an existing single-family home has risen by double-digits for seven of the last eight months (and in the eighth, the year-over-year increase was 9.4 percent). For comparison’s sake, note that in the run-up to the collapse in 2006, the median price of an existing single-family home rose by double-digits year-over-year for 11 straight months.
An increase in prices itself does not signal a bubble. An unsustainable increase, not supported by other data, however, would. In the run-up to the 2006 collapse, the higher prices—which had been trending up for four years—led to a sharp uptick in construction wholly unsupported by demographics.
Despite the fact we still theoretically have more potential sellers than buyers, which should drive prices down, the inventory of homes listed for sale has remained low. That low inventory, combined with low interest rates keeping affordability high, has driven prices up.
Many analysts contend the current prices are justified by low rates, which keep home affordable even as prices rise. This would suggest that as rates rise, prices will move in the opposite direction, a replay of the post-2006 economy. That’s not though what history tells us. If prices fall in response to higher rates, it would mean market behavior has changed, a phenomenon for which we may not be prepared.
For more...see We're-forever-seeing-bubbles-2013-06-21
Sunday, June 23, 2013
Trulia: Asking Prices Accelerate in Least Affordable Housing Markets
Asking prices are rising at an especially fast pace in the least affordable housing markets, according to Trulia.
Nationally, asking prices increased 9.5 percent year-over-year in May, but in the ten least affordable metros, asking prices spiked 16.3 percent during the same time period.
Trulia also found out of the 100 largest metros, 98 saw asking prices increase over the last year.
Among the least affordable markets, seven were in California.
Honolulu was found to be the least affordable metro, where 74 percent of monthly household income is used to pay a mortgage. In San Francisco, households spend 55 percent of their monthly wages on their mortgage.
In the 10 least affordable markets, households spent at least a third of their income towards their mortgage.
The calculation assumed a 3.8 percent interest rate on a home that is 1800 square feet.
For the full article, see trulia-asking-prices-accelerate-in-least-affordable-housing-markets-2013-06-07
Nationally, asking prices increased 9.5 percent year-over-year in May, but in the ten least affordable metros, asking prices spiked 16.3 percent during the same time period.
Trulia also found out of the 100 largest metros, 98 saw asking prices increase over the last year.
Among the least affordable markets, seven were in California.
Honolulu was found to be the least affordable metro, where 74 percent of monthly household income is used to pay a mortgage. In San Francisco, households spend 55 percent of their monthly wages on their mortgage.
In the 10 least affordable markets, households spent at least a third of their income towards their mortgage.
The calculation assumed a 3.8 percent interest rate on a home that is 1800 square feet.
Jed Kolko, Trulia’s chief economist, gave two reasons for why the gap in affordability matters.
For one, it leads to a migration out of less affordable markets.
“[M]ore people in expensive markets like California will look to relocate to cheaper markets like Texas when the time comes to buy,” he said.
For the full article, see trulia-asking-prices-accelerate-in-least-affordable-housing-markets-2013-06-07
Saturday, June 22, 2013
Friday, June 21, 2013
Housing Pushes Economy’s Recovery
Fannie Mae’s Economic & Strategic Research Group has announced that the
strengthening of the housing market is pushing the economy forward but the
country’s growth has yet to reach its full potential.
While we are currently experiencing a prolonged period of steady economic growth, it is expected that growth will remain below 2.0 percent for the first half of the year, with gradual strengthening in the second half of 2013 and into 2014.
The ongoing recovery in housing has contributed greatly to an economy moving in a positive direction, thanks to home prices, home sales, and homebuilding activity showing signs of long-term improvement. In fact, growth is expected to surpass 2.5 percent in 2014 due to improved conditions in the housing market.
For more info see fanniemae news/2013/
While we are currently experiencing a prolonged period of steady economic growth, it is expected that growth will remain below 2.0 percent for the first half of the year, with gradual strengthening in the second half of 2013 and into 2014.
The ongoing recovery in housing has contributed greatly to an economy moving in a positive direction, thanks to home prices, home sales, and homebuilding activity showing signs of long-term improvement. In fact, growth is expected to surpass 2.5 percent in 2014 due to improved conditions in the housing market.
For more info see fanniemae news/2013/
Thursday, June 20, 2013
NEARLY 1 MILLION HOUSES FLOAT BACK INTO POSITIVE EQUITY
Approximately 850,000 more residential properties
returned to a state of positive equity during the first quarter of 2013,
according to the CoreLogic first quarter home equity report.
The recovery is still far below peak home price levels, but tight supplies in many areas coupled with continued demand for single family homes should help close the gap.
Rising home values in many areas including many areas within San Bernadino, Riverside and Los Angeles counties are responsible for causing the negative equity burden to recede.
For the full article visit 1-million-houses-float-back-positive-equity
The recovery is still far below peak home price levels, but tight supplies in many areas coupled with continued demand for single family homes should help close the gap.
Rising home values in many areas including many areas within San Bernadino, Riverside and Los Angeles counties are responsible for causing the negative equity burden to recede.
For the full article visit 1-million-houses-float-back-positive-equity
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
5 Federal Programs Homeowners Should Review for 2013
As homeowners receive their annual property assessments
& taxable valuations in the mail, many will see the continued drop in the
value of their home. Despite recent reports of declining “underwater”
homeowners in the fourth quarter of 2012, there are still many homeowners
looking for help.
Property values in many California markets to include, Chino, Chino Hills, Diamond Bar and
surrounding areas are starting to see property values creeping up; but, many
homeowners are still underwater and owe more than their home is worth.
Information & education is imperative on housing
programs that are available to homeowners. Qualifying for one of these programs
can mean the difference between losing or staying in their home.
The following is a list federal programs compiled by
Greenpath Debt Solutions.
- HAMP (Home Affordable Modification Program) - Tier 1 & Tier 2
- HAFA (Home Affordable Foreclosure Altrnatives) - Updates
- Independent Foreclosure Review Alternative Settlement
- Fannie Mae Refinancing Incentive
- Hardest Hit Funds - See http://www.ncsha.org/housing-help
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