December 22, 2008
- Foreclosure Relief: Not Until Obama Takes Over
Foreclosure Relief: Not Until Obama Takes Over
Any use of $700 billion in financial industry rescue money to aid homeowners will come after President George W. Bush leaves office next month. That word came recently from Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass.
While the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has proposed to use $24 billion from the financial bailout to [...]
December 15, 2008
- October Pending Home Sales Slip 1%
October Pending Home Sales Slip 1%
Despite a meltdown in financial markets, a credit freeze and soaring unemployment, housing markets fared better than expected in October.
The number of homes under contract to be sold fell by just 1% year over year according to a report released recently by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), and were [...]
December 10, 2008
- New Home Sales Fall to 18-Year Low
New Home Sales Fall to 18-Year Low
Sales of newly constructed homes slumped in October to an annual rate not seen since 1991, according to government figures released recently.
The U.S. Census Bureau reported that new home sales fell to an annualized rate of 433,000 in October. That's down 5.3% from the revised 457,000 annual rate recorded [...]
November 29, 2008
- The Mortgage Meltdown: Can Anyone Stop It?
The Mortgage Meltdown: Can Anyone Stop It?
Fifteen months into the worst credit crisis in decades, major banks and the federal government are coming together on a solution for struggling mortgage borrowers.
The goal is to hasten the process for renegotiating hundreds of thousands of delinquent loans, either those held by major banks or held by Fannie [...]
November 23, 2008
- Home Prices Decline - AGAIN
Home Prices Decline - AGAIN
According to a report released recently by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), national home prices, driven lower by a flood of foreclosures, plummeted in the third quarter by a record 9% year-over-year.
The median price of a single-family home fell in four out of five states. The national median price [...]
November 17, 2008
- Homeowners Under Water
Homeowners Under Water
ationwide, almost one out of every five homeowners with a mortgage owes more to their lender than their properties are worth. But if you subtract the states where nearly 60% of all homeowners are "under water" (owing more on their mortgage than the home is worth), which includes California, Florida, Arizona, Georgia [...]
November 16, 2008
- Pending Home Sales Fall in September
Pending Home Sales Fall in September
The Pending Home Sales Index for the month of September fell 4.6% to 89.2 after climbing 7.4% in August, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Still, the index was up 1.6% from a year ago.
The NAR report said the dip in sales was tempered by a sharp decline [...]
November 9, 2008
- Obama on Fighting Foreclosure
Obama on Fighting Foreclosure
During his campaign for the presidency, Barack Obama explained where he stands on many of the economic issues that matter most to Americans.
On foreclosures, Obama wants the government to step in to help homeowners facing foreclosure.
· Allow troubled homeowners to refinance to a loan insured by the Federal Housing Administration.
· Require any [...]
November 6, 2008
- Foreclosures Rise Again
Foreclosures Rise Again
U.S. foreclosure activity in September rose 21 percent from a year earlier but fell by double-digits from the prior month as some state laws slowed the foreclosure process.
Foreclosure filings—default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions—fell by 12 percent from August to 265,968 in September, according to a monthly report by research firm [...]
November 5, 2008
- Home Sales Up, Prices Down
Home Sales Up, Prices Down
Sales of existing homes rose in September, but prices continued to drop, according to the latest reading on the battered housing market by the National Association of Realtors. The report shows sales by homeowners jumped in September to an annual pace of 5.18 million, up 1.4% from a year ago. It [...]
November 2, 2008
- Rescue for U.S. Homeowners?
Rescue for U.S. Homeowners?
Housing is at the root of the financial crisis, and preventing foreclosures could bring a double-barreled benefit. It would allow families to remain in their homes and could also help keep the housing market from spiraling out of control. The more foreclosed homes that get dumped on the market, the [...]
October 24, 2008
- Housing Recovery: Greenspan Speaks Out
Housing Recovery: Greenspan Speaks Out
According to an article he wrote recently for Emerging Markets magazine, former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan says he sees the U.S. housing market will begin to recover in the first half of 2009.
Greenspan wrote that the recent slowing in the rate of decline in U.S. home prices is [...]
October 21, 2008
- Financial Meltdown: Who's Really to Blame?
Financial Meltdown: Who's Really to Blame?
If you watch a lot of cable TV, you've no doubt been hearing all the nonsense about unqualified borrowers who got loans as a form of economic affirmative action.
They claim that the entire weight of the global financial collapse rests on the shoulders of unqualified poor, minority borrowers who got [...]
October 10, 2008
- Bailout: Will it Work?
Bailout: Will it Work?
The $700 billion bailout plan that has now been signed into law may get banks to start lending to each other again. But it remains to be seen how long that will take to jumpstart an ailing economy.
The goal is to unfreeze the credit markets. Financial institutions have become paralyzed with fear [...]
October 4, 2008
- New Home Builds at a 17-Year Low
New Home Builds at a 17-Year Low
Construction of new homes and apartments fell to its lowest level in 17 years in August, showing the country is still gripped by a severe housing downturn that has triggered billions of dollars of losses and is reshaping the structure of U.S. finance.
Housing construction dropped a surprising 6.2% last [...]
September 17, 2008
- Housing Woes Won’t End With Bailout
Housing Woes Won’t End With Bailout
The federal government's takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may save the battered real estate market from a complete meltdown. But financial experts say the bailout won't lead to a housing recovery just yet.
There is still a large supply of unsold homes on the market and an increasing number [...]
September 9, 2008
- New Home Sales Rise: A Welcomed Sign for Housing
New Home Sales Rise: A Welcomed Sign for Housing
The sale of newly constructed homes in the month of July rose 2.4%, according to a report issued recently by the United States Census Bureau. This follows another report issued by the National Association of Realtors indicating that July sales of previously owned homes hit a 5-month [...]
September 6, 2008
- Existing Home Sales Hit 5 Month High
Existing Home Sales Hit 5 Month High
The National Association of Realtors announced recently that Existing Home Sales, after falling to 10-year low in June, rebounded in July to a 5-month high. The report, which measures the month-over-month sale of previously owned homes, indicated sales of such homes increased 3.1 percent.
Bob Walters, Chief Economist for Quicken [...]
September 2, 2008
- Interest Rates: Will the Fed Hike Rates?
Interest Rates: Will the Fed Hike Rates?
Even as they grappled with inflation worries, most Federal Reserve officials at their August meeting didn't believe the Fed's key interest rate was too low given harder-to-get credit conditions straining consumers and businesses alike.
The Fed, at its Aug. 5th meeting, decided to hold its key rate steady at 2% [...]
August 25, 2008
- Home Prices Down 7.6%
Home Prices Down 7.6%
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported recently that 'Nationwide, the median existing single family home price plunged 7.6% to $206,500 in the second quarter, down from $223,500 in the same period of 2007. The median price represents the point at which half of all homes sold for more and half sold [...]
