West Coast Estates LA

It's official: The housing market stinks. So when's the turnaround coming?

Sales of new homes went into a freefall in May without the government's artificial lifeline. No wonder homebuilders were feeling so glum in June. Analysts were expecting a dip in the housing market, but nothing this bad.

New home sales dropped 32.7 percent from April, the Commerce Department reported, and 18.3 percent from the year before, to a seasonally adjusted rate of 300,000 units. That's the lowest level since the government started tracking home sales in 1963.

Not surprisingly, people are now starting to worry again about the threat of a double dip in the housing market.

Where are things headed now?

Source: http://www.housingwatch.com/2010/06/23/new-home-sales-lagged-in-may-so-whats-next/

"Why on Earth would you buy down here when you can rent?" asked a friend of mine in Miami Beach not long ago. "Buying is so over."

He promptly moved to Manhattan for work reasons–and bought a $1 million loft on the Upper West Side.

Note the typical behavior. People want to buy when prices are up, and turn more wary when they've collapsed. Logically it makes no sense. Research out Thursday adds some hard numbers.

Real estate website Trulia.com has looked at major real estate markets across the country and asked: Is it cheaper to buy, or to rent?

By Trulia's math my friend was moving in exactly the wrong direction.

Rent in Manhattan: Home prices there are way too high, says Trulia. (Ditto San Francisco.)

Buy in Miami. And Phoenix. And Las Vegas. And most of the other places that have been flattened by the crash. Homes there are cheap compared to rents.

Source:  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703561604575282910161870380.html?mod=WSJ_RealEstate_LeftTopNews

For years, Jennifer Metz and her husband John yearned for a bigger home in San Francisco. Three months ago, the couple started looking, figuring that in this shaky economy, their $3 million budget should provide them a pick of attractive homes and accommodating sellers.

They were wrong. Hours after seeing a 5,000-square-foot fixer-upper in Presidio Heights with an asking price around $2.7 million, the Metzes put in a bid—and lost. Soon after, they made another offer on a four-bedroom in Russian Hill. Their bid was rejected.

Last week, the Metzes rushed over to a large, dilapidated home in Pacific Heights that needed a lot of work but was asking the (relatively) low price of $2.25 million. The Metzes put in their over-ask bid the next day, but lost that one too: There were nine offers; the winning bid was $2.56 million.

"It's frustrating," says Ms. Metz, a 44-year-old stay-at-home mom whose husband works in finance. "You think you put in a good offer but, no."

After a near-disastrous 2009, the luxury market appears to be making a comeback, driven by growing buyer confidence, improved financing conditions and more-realistic seller pricing. Despite the housing downturn, attractively priced homes in some of the nation's most coveted neighborhoods are selling, sometimes fast and sometimes with multiple offers. Nationwide, sales of homes selling for $2 million to $5 million in the first quarter totaled 2,461, up 32% from a year before, says CoreLogic.

Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704717004575268573660359734.html?mod=WSJ_Real+Estate_LeftTopNews#printMode

Sales of existing homes increased in April for the second month in a row, as buyers took advantage of the government's home-buyer tax credit.

Sales rose 7.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.77 million units, the National Association of Realtors said Monday. Year-over-year, existing-home sales were up 22.8% in April.

Prices also increased, with the median price for an existing home at $173,100 in April, up 4% from a year ago.

The government's home-buyer tax credit expired at the end of April. A tax credit for first-time buyers was initially scheduled to end on Nov. 30, but that tax credit was eventually extended, complemented by an additional tax break for repeat buyers.

The expiration of the credit has raised concerns among economists and others that the housing market could falter without it. Last week, the Commerce Department reported that, while home construction rose in April, permits for future building fell sharply.

Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704113504575264272784586514.html?mod=WSJ_Real+Estate_LEADTopNews

Bipolar is what comes to mind when diagnosing the post-homebuyer tax credit market. There are two separate forces pulling it in opposite directions, and experts aren't yet sure which path the market will take.On one hand, sales and prices are rising, indicating recovery. On the other hand, so are interest rates and repossessions, which most certainly do not. And then there are the millions of foreclosures that need to be sold but haven't yet been listed -- so-called shadow inventory -- that could derail a real recovery if they hit the market in floods.

Source: http://money.cnn.com/2010/05/17/real_estate/housing_market_direction/index.htm

The number of homes listed for sale grew in many metropolitan areas in April.

The supply of homes available for sale in 27 major metropolitan areas at the end of April was up 2.6% from a month earlier, according to figures compiled by ZipRealty Inc., a real-estate brokerage firm based in Emeryville, Calif. The ZipRealty data cover all single-family homes, condominiums and town houses listed on local multiple-listing services in metro areas where the firm operates.

Source: http://blogs.wsj.com/developments/2010/05/06/housing-inventory-rises-in-many-cities/

Fannie Mae, the government-backed mortgage giant, announced Friday that it will tighten lending requirements for the interest-only loans and adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) it backs.To get a Fannie Mae-backed interest-only mortgage, for example, homebuyers will have to make down payments of 30% of the sale price.

Source: http://money.cnn.com/2010/04/30/real_estate/Fannie_okays_interest_only_loans/index.htm

No longer able to afford your mortgage payment? Thinking about walking away from your underwater house? Really, what you'd like is an affordable way to stay in your current residence until you find a better solution.

Then Fannie Mae's Deed-for-Lease program might be right for you.

Soruce: http://www.housingwatch.com/2010/04/21/fannie-maes-deed-for-lease-right-for-you/

Buying a home is the biggest purchase most people will ever make, yet many go into it blind. Here are the 6 most common -- and costly -- mistakes homebuyers make.  

Source: http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2010/autos/1004/gallery.Costly_homebuying_mistakes/index.html

President Obama's foreclosure prevention plan has helped nearly 228,000 delinquent borrowers keep their homes, the administration said Wednesday.That's up from a month ago, when roughly 168,000 people received long-term mortgage modifications.

Source: http://money.cnn.com/2010/04/14/real_estate/foreclosure_prevention_obama/index.htm