Stimulus plan also sparks housing market
February 1, 2008
This article from CNNMoney.com, reports that the economic stimulus plan announced by Congress last Thursday includes provisions that specifically address the mortgage crises. The package proposes lifting the dollar amount of loans that are eligible for purchase by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae to $625,000 for 12 months, up from the current $417,000, and then raiding it to $725,000 permanently. “This will have a big, immediate impact, especially in California where sales have been down most significantly,” said Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Yun added, “There’s a lot of pent-up demand in the market. This will boost confidence among these potential buyers, and some of the people on the fence will start buying.”
October Stats
November 26, 2007
So, October stats came in last week and they are on par with September. The month started off a little stronger at the beginning of the month, but slowed down toward the end of the month. This is not all that unusual. There were probably quite a few people that had some issues with financing in September that go pushed to early October. October sales of existing homes came in at 3457 with an average sale price of $324,000. Since getting a jumbo loan was and is considerably more difficult these days there is also no real surprise that the average sale price has dropped a bit. We expect to see the average sale price climb as the mortgage situation gets straightened out. Looking forward to November we see things staying about the same as October and September. We expect the number of existing homes sold to be around 3400 for November.
RealtyTrac reports Q3 foreclosures up nearly 34%
November 14, 2007
An estimated 446,726 properties were hit with foreclosure filings during the third quarter, a 33.9 percent increase from the previous quarter and more than double the number a year ago, according to data aggregator RealtyTrac. Nevada, California and Florida posted the highest rates of foreclosure in the nation, followed by Michigan, Ohio, Colorado, Arizona, Georgia, Indiana and Texas. Arizona is ranked 7th with a 203.1% increase over a year ago. To read the whole article go here.
Oh Canada!
November 13, 2007
If you think the value of the dollar dropping is all bad, check out this article recently published in The Star, a newspaper out of Toronto. Canadians have some new found money to spend and some of them are looking South for some real estate bargains. Considering this is becoming the best buyer’s market in a long time, I can’t say that I blame them. I recently spoke with real estate broker Marg Scheben-Edey from Ontario. She definitely has seen an increase in interest from the snowbirds in her area. She has even posted about The Star article in her blog. I have personally noticed an increase in Canadians visiting Scottsdale looking for homes. This influx of money from outside the country may be a little shot in the arm for our sagging real estate market. I have talked to others who believe that we will continue to see an increase in snowbird activity from Canada as the Winter gets colder up North. Looks like we might have a good reason to thank our little brother North of the border.
October Sales Equal to September Sales
November 5, 2007
Considering how bad of a month September was for existing home sales, it is not surprising that sales in October were able to match September. There were about 3420 existing home sales in October which is on par with September’s sales of 3430. Typically, October is less than September, but there has really been nothing typical about the current market. September was affected largely by the credit issues in mid-August it was not surprising to see those sales dip. October saw the sale of some of those homes that would have sold in September if it weren’t for the credit crunch. As credit issues subside we should see some increases in home sales. Unfortunately, we are entering the two slowest months of the year for homes sales, November and December. As of today there are just over 57,300 active listings in the ARMLS. At the current sale rate we have over 16 months of inventory. Of the active listings 48.6% or 27,842 properties are vacant. Needless to say, until the number of listings declines considerably the market has little chance of improving.
Sales and Pending Sales Trend over 1 year
October 24, 2007
Below is the trend of sales and properties in escrow for home resales over the last year for the entire Phoenix Metro area. As of right now October is looking to be about even with September sales. Properties with a status of Pending appear to be looking a little stronger.
Below is the number of homes on the market each day for the last year.
Home Sales Plunge by 8 Percent Nationally
October 24, 2007
Sales of existing homes plunged by a record amount in September as turmoil in mortgage markets added more problems to a housing industry in its worst slump in 16 years.
The National Association of Realtors reported Wednesday that sales of existing homes fell 8 percent in September, the largest decline to show up in records dating to 1999. The seasonally adjusted annual sales rate of 5.04 million existing homes was also the slowest pace on record.
Read the whole article:
Best Places To Live? – Phoenix is one of them.
October 8, 2007
According to an article in Resident Publications Phoenix is one of the better places to live.
September Sales Down Nearly 21%
October 4, 2007
The sale of existing homes fell 21% compared to August sales. This is most likely a fallout from the mortgage issues that we experience in August. We are still at about 57,000 homes on the market with 47% of those being vacant. In September 3,300 homes were sold which is lower than any month in the past 6 years. So far October is showing some signs of an improvement over September. At the September rate of sales we have 17 months worth of inventory. Look for October to equal or surpass August sales of 4,200. The best bet at this point is to hold off on selling your home until after the first of the year.
What the Federal Rate Cut Means for Homeowners
September 20, 2007
The Federal Reserve said it lowered short-term interest rates by half a percentage point, to 4.75%, to combat the effects of a weaker housing market and tighter credit on the broader economy.
Here is a look at what the Fed’s action means for consumers:
- Homeowners. The rate cut is good news for borrowers with home-equity lines of credit, and savings could show up as soon as the next monthly statement.
- Savers. Savers could soon see lower payouts on their savings accounts, certificates of deposit and money-market mutual funds.
- Credit Cards. Many credit-card customers should soon see some relief. About 85% of all credit cards carry variable rates.
- Auto Loans. A rate cut isn’t likely to have a big impact on new-car loans in part because more than half of all auto loans are already offered at reduced rates due to heavy manufacturer incentives…
- Student Loans. Students with private, variable-rate student loans pegged to the prime rate may see their rates adjust more quickly than borrowers with loans tied to Libor.
