Pent up buyer demand that has amassed over the past five years since the downturn in the U.S. housing market, will drive a major rebound in home sales during 2012, according to a new Housing Predictor survey. The increase in sales seems to already be materializing as home buyers that can qualify for a mortgage… Continue reading Pent Up Demand to Drive Rebound
Category: Housing Market
Efforts Grow Against Bad Bank Behavior
By Kevin Chiu Billions of dollars in damages are being sought against bank executives through lawsuits as foreclosure fraud class actions pile up against major banks. The lawsuits are besieging an industry that racked up record profits as a result of bad bank behavior in what amounts to the U.S. largest series of alleged fraud… Continue reading Efforts Grow Against Bad Bank Behavior
Hurting Miami Home Sales Rebound
By Kevin Chiu Home and condominium sales are making a major rebound in Miami, one of the U.S. most severely devastated housing markets. Condo sales rose 29% over 2009 in December clearly demonstrating that the South Florida market is making strides into a real estate recovery, despite tight mortgage lending standards. Developers constructed more than… Continue reading Hurting Miami Home Sales Rebound
Mortgage Rates Mixed Moves
By Mike Colpitts Rates on a conventional 30-year fixed rate mortgage moved higher for the first time in three weeks, as rates on other loan products for home financing moved lower showing mixed moves for the week, according to Freddie Mac. The rate on the long term mortgage rose to 4.74%, an uptick of just… Continue reading Mortgage Rates Mixed Moves
Home Sales Surge Higher Showing Recovery
By Kevin Chiu Home sales surged higher in the last month of the year as buyers took advantage of near record low mortgage rates despite the holiday season, according to the National Association of Realtors. The existing sales of single family homes, townhouses and condominiums rose 12.3%, the fifth increase in the last six months.… Continue reading Home Sales Surge Higher Showing Recovery
Neither Best nor Worst in California
By Mike Colpitts Long viewed as the national leader in real estate and hundreds of other dizzying trends and fads, California neither made the annual Best or Worst 25 Housing Predictor market lists for 2011. It was the first time in the index’s six year history that a Golden State market failed to make the… Continue reading Neither Best nor Worst in California
Refinancing Shows Third Straight Weekly Rise
By Kevin Chiu Refinancing applications rose for the third straight week in a row as interest rates took a slight decline, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The refinance index rose 7.7% for the week ending January 14 th, as refinances rise to the highest level since before the holiday season in early December. The… Continue reading Refinancing Shows Third Straight Weekly Rise
Housing Recovery Develops
By Mike Colpitts Anchored by stronger economic growth in northern tier states with higher production in farming and energy, a housing recovery is slowly developing that is already broadening into portions of the mid-west. Three of the nation’s lowest populated states, Wyoming, North Dakota and South Dakota had little to do with the real estate… Continue reading Housing Recovery Develops
Should You Work with a Real Estate Agent
By Lois A. Vitt, Ph.D. When asked most people who use a real estate agent to sell their home say they would choose to do it again. Whether this option is best for your needs is a question that requires some research and careful introspection. While selling your home on your own may appear to… Continue reading Should You Work with a Real Estate Agent
Foreclosures Set New Record in 2010 as Repossessions Ease
By Kevin Chiu Nearly 2.9 million U.S. residential properties received foreclosure filings in 2010 setting a new record in the nation’s foreclosure crisis even as homeowner foreclosures eased as a result of the robo-signing scandal, according to RealtyTrac. All combined default notices, scheduled auctions and formal bank repossession notices totaled 3,825,637 filings for the year.… Continue reading Foreclosures Set New Record in 2010 as Repossessions Ease