Distressed Inventory Fading Fast

Distressed Inventory Fading Fast

As Housing Market Strengthens: Foreclosure inventories nationwide fell 32 percent in July compared to a year ago, another sign that the foreclosure crisis may finally be over, 

“Completed foreclosures and delinquency rates continue their rapid descent in July,”

“Every state posted a year-over-year decline in foreclosures, and serious delinquencies fell to the lowest level since December 2008.

Not surprisingly, non-judicial states have come the farthest the fastest in reducing the shadow inventory and lowering delinquency rates.”

The following five states had the highest foreclosure inventory .

Victory for Homebuyers

Victory for Homebuyers
'Realtors® will continue to oppose any regulation that requires unreasonably high downpayments from consumers. We are committed to working on behalf of America’s hardworking families to ensure that anyone who is able and willing to assume the responsibilities of owning a home has the opportunity to pursue that dream, now and into the future.'

NAR President Gary Thomas: 'I am pleased to announce a significant victory for REALTORS® and homebuyers. 'The re-proposed Qualified Residential Mortgage rule announced this morning is a victory for homebuyers and the future of homeownership in this country. 

This version of the QRM rule will give creditworthy buyers access to safe and affordable loan products without overly burdensome downpayment requirements. Lean more watch our video...

Rising Rates Prompt Cash Buyers to Act

Rising Rates Prompt Cash Buyers to Act

While higher mortgage rates have been blamed for the slowdown in pending home sales, they may be contributing to an increase in cash purchases, RealtyTrac suggested in a recent report.

In July, about 40 percent of residential property sales were all-cash transactions. The share presents an increase from 35 percent in June and 31 percent compared to July 2012. 
Housing in Third Phase of Recovery, Awaiting Fourth: The housing market is now 64 percent of the way back to “normal,” and we are entering the third phase of the recovery, according to Trulia’s monthly Housing Barometer. What we’re waiting on now, according to Trulia, is the fourth phase, in which “young adults finally start moving out of their parents’ homes. 

Home Prices Edge Closer to Pre-Crash Levels

Home Prices Edge Closer to Pre-Crash Levels

 As Home Prices Edge Closer to Pre-Crash Levels, The housing market is inching closer to what it once was: Home prices are now within 15.2 percent nationally from their peak, according to a new report by Lender Processing Services. 

The LPS price index rose in June to $229,000, up 6.9 percent from last year's levels. In June 2006, the peak was $270,000.

Family Proximity is Lower Priority for Buyers, More home buyers are saying that living near family members is not an important consideration for them when home-shopping. They’d rather concentrate on property size, crime rates, school district, and length of commute when shopping for a new home rather than focusing on the distance to their in-laws, according to a new survey by Trulia See The No. 1 driver in their home search?

Shadow Inventories Becoming Vanishing Problem

Shadow Inventories Becoming Vanishing Problem

Shadow inventories posted the largest quarter-over-quarter decline since the housing crisis began, and dropped 23 percent year-over-year, according to Compass Point Research & Trading. 

Shadow inventories — homes at risk of default that have yet to hit the market — once posed a big threat to the housing recovery. At its peak in March 2010, shadow inventory was at about 5.5 million loans, according to data compiled by the Mortgage Bankers Association and Bloomberg. For the second quarter of 2013, shadow inventory has fallen to 2.99 million.  The decline is expected to continue as more home owners stay current on their loans and  NAR Projects Slight Increase for Apartment Vacancies; Rents to Rise. 

Time on Market Decreases in July

Time on Market Decreases in July

Homes Receiving Multiple Offers: Homes are selling quickly with multiple offers and favorable prices, according to the Campbell/Inside Mortgage Finance HousingPulse Tracking Survey released Friday.

The average number of weeks a home spent on the market in the three-month period ending in July was 8.6 weeks, down from 9.2 weeks in May. Non-distressed homes that sold in July received an average of 2.3 offers. 

Sellers received close to their full asking price in July. The sales-to-list-price ratio was 98 percent for the month, up from 97.6 percent in May. Non-distressed homes sold for 95 percent of their asking price in July. July Home Sales Spike 6.5 percent.

Mortgage Rates Surge to 2-Year High

Mortgage Rates Surge to 2-Year High

Average fixed-rate mortgages edged higher this week to the highest average in two years as speculation mounts that the Fed will soon taper its bond purchase program. 

Meeting participants acknowledged mortgage rate increases might restrain housing market activity, but several members expressed confidence the housing recovery would be resilient in the face of higher rates,”Average fixed-rate mortgages edged higher this week to the highest average in two years 
Watch our video....

July Home Sales Spike 6.5 Percent

July Home Sales Spike 6.5 Percent
Since 2009: Existing-home sales soared 6.5 percent in July to an annual sales rate of 5.39 million—the highest level since November 2009—as the price of a single-family home slipped 0.2 percent, the National Association of Realtors reported Wednesday.

The boost in sales came two months after a sharp jump in NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index, which was 111.3 in May, up 5.8 percent from April.
Existing-home sales continue to be plagued though by a tight inventory. The number of homes on the market in July was down 120,000 from a year earlier. Though flat in June, months’ supply of homes for sale—computed using the number of homes for sale and the sales pace—was down 1.2 months from a year earlier. The months’ supply has been down year-over-year for 25 straight months.Watch our video to learn more...

FHA Trims Waiting Period for Borrowers

FHA Trims Waiting Period for Borrowers
Waiting Period: The Federal Housing Administration (FHA)
 is allowing borrowers who went through a bankruptcy, foreclosure, deed-in-lieu, or short sale to reenter the market in as little as 12 months, according to a mortgage letter released Friday. In order to be eligible for the more lenient approval process, provided documents must show “certain credit impairments” were from loss of employment or loss of income that was beyond the borrower’s control. The new guidance is for case numbers assigned on or after August 15, 2013, and is effective through September 30, 2016. Read more ....

Become a Home Owner for $1 In Gary, Ind.,

Become a Home Owner for $1 In Gary, Ind.,
Some residents of Gary, Ind., could become home owners for only $1. The city is running a real estate fire sale, selling a dozen homes for $1 each to eligible buyers.

The city repossessed the homes after the owners became delinquent on their property taxes, and as part of its neighborhood stabilization effort, the city wants to sell them to people who will refurbish them. 
While housing markets across the country are recovering from the deepest throes of the foreclosure crisis, others are just stumbling into it -- and they aren't exactly the places you'd expect. Surprising foreclosure hot spots

Salt Lake home prices increased 32 % since 2012

Salt Lake home prices increased 32 % since 2012
Is this a sign of a second housing bubble?Home prices climbed in the 2nd quarter of 2013, marking 15 consecutive months of rising prices.The median single-family home price in the April through June period in Salt Lake County increased to $249,700, up 17.2 percent compared to $213,000 in the second quarter of 2012. Since April 2012, home prices in the Salt Lake area have increased every month year-over-year.  See The top three highest-priced sales areas.The Wild Ride in Housing Prices

Helping Some Markets See Faster Recovery

Helping Some Markets See Faster Recovery

Location, Employment: The positive indicators seen in housing markets across the country are not a mirage, but a true recovery, according to RealtyTrac VP Daren Blomquist and a panel of six real estate professionals who spoke during a roundtable discussion Friday.

RealtyTrac ranked 100 markets in terms of recovery and found a smattering of markets from all regions in the top 20. 

“We don’t see a change in that,” he added.

While the recovery is widespread, participants in Friday’s roundtable worry the qualified mortgage rule will dampen the recovery. Studies have suggested anywhere from 25 to 43 percent of applicants receiving mortgages today will not qualify for a mortgage under the new rules.

Rise in Foreclosures Starts Isolated to Few State

Rise in Foreclosures Starts Isolated to Few State

Completed foreclosures in 2013 are projected to be down about 27 percent from last year — the lowest since 2007, RealtyTrac reported Thursday. 

The projected 490,000 foreclosures this year is a far cry from the peak of 1.05 million foreclosures in 2010.

The country is on track to end the year with the lowest number of homes repossessed by lenders in the last six years, according to RealtyTrac. And the drop in repossessions and foreclosures should help boost home values, the firm said. Lenders also initiated fewer foreclosures in July, down 38 percent year-over-year, RealtyTrac reports. Mortgage Rates Stabilize, with 30-Year: Having spent the last several months bouncing around.

Is there a stigma with 'short sales'?

Is there a stigma with 'short sales'?

Home buyers once saw short sales as big bargains, but their appeal has fizzled in some parts of the country — so much so that some real estate professionals are advertising listings as 'not a short sale' to attract more buyers.

''Short sale' does have a stigma now,' says Summer Greene, regional manager of Better Homes and Gardens Florida First Real Estate in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Greene says getting bank approval for a short sale can be difficult, and the process of buying a short sale can take four to six months in her area. 

Cost of Renting, Owning Unaffordable for Many Workers Across the U.S.

“One of the most overlooked aspects of this recovery is that for many workers, incomes are not rebounding in step with local housing markets,”

Ogden-Clearfield has topped affordability chart

Ogden-Clearfield has topped affordability chart For the past four quarters.
Rising home prices and mortgage rates mixed with stagnant incomes may be putting home ownership more out of reach for the average home buyer, according to the latest affordability index from the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo. 

The NAHB index shows that for the second quarter that 69.3 percent of all homes sold between April and June were affordable to families earning a median income of $64,400. In the first quarter, that percentage stood at 73.7 percent, and affordability reached a peak in 2011 at 78 percent, according to the index. 

It’s the first time that the measure has fallen below 70 percent since late 2008. 
Nationally, the median home price rose

Slowdown in Home Prices No Reason to Panic?

Slowdown in Home Prices No Reason to Panic?

Though home prices have risen nearly 12 percent from a year ago, a slowdown is expected soon. But many analysts say it’s no cause for concern. 

“Prices are still going to rise — just not as at brisk a pace as we’ve seen over the past year,” The Wall Street Journal reports. “This should calm down those pundits who have fretted over a new crop of housing bubbles.”

Backbone of Housing Recovery Repeat Buyers: The growing ranks of repeat home buyers are helping to drive the housing recovery, making up for the dwindling numbers of first-time buyers. 

Don't Abuse Eminent Domain

Don't Abuse Eminent Domain

FHFA to Cities:The Federal Housing Finance Agency is the latest agency to step in and threaten lawsuits to try to stop municipalities from using eminent domain to purchase underwater mortgages. The agency says they have “serious concerns” about any municipality that adopts such a plan, and they will consider legal action against any city that does. 

The agency’s announcement follows shortly after a group of the nation’s largest bondholders filed a lawsuit against the city of Richmond, Calif., which is trying to move forward with using eminent domain to seize mortgages. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which are regulated by FHFA, are among the bondholders involved in the lawsuit. The lawsuit calls the use of eminent domain to seize mortgages “unconstitutional” and argues that the loans aren’t being seized for a valid public purpose. 

Moody's: Privatizing Mortgage Finance Will Cost Borrowers:

Solving the Wrong Problem

Solving the Wrong Problem

Just like the man looking for his keys, President Obama is trying to solve the wrong problem by calling, as he did in his speech in Phoenix, for the end of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as we know it.

The White House, in its suggestions to reform the housing finance system, describes the government guarantee of “more than 80% of all mortgages” as “unsustainable” and says the president wants to “put private capital at the center of the housing finance system.

”Instead of suggesting replacing Fannie and Freddie to restore the nation’s housing markets, the president should be proposing to return them to their original charters (without private investors) supporting the “plain vanilla” loans, which would not be profitable—or profitable enough—for private investment banks. Read the story of a Good Samaritan walking down the street one evening spotting a man on his hands and knees patting the ground.

Mortgage Rates Seesaw

Mortgage Rates Seesaw

Since Fed’s Taper Talk: Fixed-rate mortgages held mostly steady this week, with the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage staying below its recent high of 4.51 percent set in mid-July, Freddie Mac reports in its weekly mortgage market survey.  

Mortgage rates have been on their way up since early May — spiking more than a full percentage point increase — after the Federal Reserve announced that it would be ending its bond-buying program soon. The Fed’s program has helped to keep  mortgage rates near record lows the past year. 

Freddie Mac reports the following national averages on mortgage rates 

In the 6-minute video Why ‘PATH’ Approach to Fannie, Freddie Phase-out is Troubling 

Consumers Still Confident Prices Will Rise

Consumers Still Confident Prices Will Rise

Despite Hike in Rates: American consumers grew increasingly positive in July, according to results in Fannie Mae’s National Housing Survey.

Undeterred by rising mortgage rates, the majority of consumers polled expressed belief that the market will continue to improve, with 53 percent saying they expect home prices will go up in the next year—though that figure does represent a decline of 4 percentage points from June’s high. The percentage of those expecting prices to drop fell to a survey low of 6 percent. Learn more about Fannie Mae.

Township in Salt Lake County

Township in Salt Lake County
Settlement of the area began in 1851 shortly after the Mormon pioneers reached the Salt Lake Valley. Early Farmers settled in 1868 at the base of the northern Oquirrh Mountains and called their community Pleasant Green. By 1900, there were about 20 families in the area. 

During the 1970s, as part of a general west valley suburbanization trend, the community experienced more dramatic growth. Inexpensive land south and east of the historic town center began being developed into moderate priced single-family homes. The new neighborhoods trended to attract middle-income working class couples with younger families. 

Just click here to see the virtual tour on this home we just listed. 

Buyers Face Higher Closing Costs

Buyers Face Higher Closing Costs

Rising mortgage rates aren't the only problem house hunters are facing. Closing costs for loan origination and other fees have increased 6 percent in the past year, according to a survey.

Borrowers with stellar credit who are making a 20 percent down payment are still forking over an average of $2,402 in closing costs on a $200,000 loan.

The main catalyst for the increase in closing costs is origination fees, which have jumped 8 percent in the past year. 

Rising interest rates often cause origination fees to go up, too. Lenders are also having to do more work underwriting loans.

Rising mortgage rates often mean lenders make less profit on their loans, so they try to make up for the loss with higher closing fees,Download Common Closing Costs for Buyers 

Demand for Non-Traditional, Sub-prime Loans Up

Demand for Non-Traditional, Sub-prime Loans Up
Adding to concerns of a new housing bubble, lenders reported an increase in demand for “non-traditional” and sub-prime mortgage loans and that they’ve responded to that demand by easing standards,
The increase in demand for non-traditional— generally “Alt-A”—loans and from sub-prime borrowers comes as sales of both new and existing-single family homes are generally rising and as both prices and mortgage rates are increasing. 

Read more: Closing Costs Rise 6% Over Last Year: The average closing cost across the United States rose over the year

Mortgage Rates Bounce Around This Week

Mortgage Rates Bounce Around This Week

Balance for Seriously Delinquent Mortgages Hits 5-Year Low: 

The total balance for seriously delinquent first mortgages decreased to a five-year low as rising home prices reduce incentives to default, Equifax stated in its National Consumer Credit Trends Report.

In June, the balance of loans 90 days or more past due or in foreclosure fell to $325 billion, down 27 percent from last year when the balance stood at $450 billion. Loans originated in 2010 or later represented about 7 percent of the balance for seriously delinquent mortgages. See Rates today:  Mortgage Rates Bounce Around This Week

Mortgage rates ticked up this week but still remain “relatively low 

Rapid Price Appreciation May Soon Curb

Rapid Price Appreciation May Soon Curb

After a 10.2 percent rise in home prices in the first quarter of 2013, expect price appreciation to decelerate in 2014, 

CoreLogic predicts that rising home prices and mortgage interest rates, as well as a more balanced inventory of homes for-sale, will cause home prices to even out more next year. 

However, the price rise isn’t over yet. 'Record levels of affordability, a slowly improving job market, and very small inventories of new and existing homes for sale will continue to drive U.S. home price appreciation during the summer,' says David Stiff, chief economist for CoreLogic Case-Shiller. Home prices rose 'Near Five-Year High' Case-Shiller Indices: Home prices rose to their highest levels in almost five years in May,

Rising Rates Getting Sellers Nervous

Rising Rates Getting Sellers Nervous

Survey: Home sellers are becoming increasingly worried about rising interest rates and their impact on home-buying demand,  nearly 1,500 home owners across the country. 

Forty-seven percent of survey respondents said they are concerned that rising rates could lower demand before they get their homes on the market. That's more than double the percentage from the previous quarter.
'Of course home sellers are worried about interest rates, but the reality is that many buyers believe that rates will continue to go up,' 
Must read: City Moving Forward Eminent Domain for Troubled Mortgages

Home Sales Index Falters in June

Home Sales Index Falters in June

Remain High on Annual Basis: Responding to higher mortgage rates, the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) slipped 0.4 percent in June to 110.9, the group reported Monday.

Economists had expected the index to drop to 110.7, which would have been a 1.4 percent decline from May’s originally reported 112.3. The May index was revised down to 111.3.
With the revision, the May index, originally reported as the highest in six years, matched the level of April 2010. The index covered the same month in which new home sales, reported last week by the Census Bureau and HUD, surged to a five year high Watch our video to learn more....