Todays Rental News » Recovery

New mortgage “fix” The end of housing values

Tim Ballering — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 22:50:35 +0000

The Obama administration on Tuesday will launch its most ambitious effort at reducing mortgage balances for homeowners who owe more than their homes are worth.

via WSJ.com.

IRS paid $23.5 billion in homebuyer tax credits

Tim Ballering — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 12:50:50 +0000

The total bill for the homebuyer tax credit so far, as reported by the Internal Revenue Service, stands at $23.5 billion.

About $16.2 billion of that is for the $8,000 (Recovery Act) and $6,500 (Assistance Act) grants shelled out to first and second-time homebuyers, respectively.

via REO Insider.

More on shadow inventory

Tim Ballering — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 20:54:42 +0000

Why do banks take so long to get a property on the market?

There is probably a lot of frustration out there among agents and buyers as to why it takes so long for foreclosed homes to get on the market.

via Zillow News.

America Stops Buying Homes

Tim Ballering — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 20:52:15 +0000

The news also means that there’s a big gap between buyers and sellers: the market isn’t clearing. Sellers are convinced that their homes are worth lots of money, or will rise in price if they just hold out a bit longer; buyers are happily renting, waiting for prices to come down. And entrepreneurial types, whom one would expect to arbitrage the two by buying houses with super-cheap mortgages and renting them out at a profit, don’t seem to have found those opportunities yet.

via Seeking Alpha.

Is it the Right Tim to Buy?

Tim Ballering — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 11:05:05 +0000

It seems like a great time to buy a house (if you don’t have to sell), values are down (so affordability is up), interest rates are at all-time lows, and high levels of inventory are languishing on the market. It all adds up to buyers who have negotiating power. Yet, the latest housing reports are undoubtedly making many home buyers skittish about entering the market. Here are just a few tips for people trying to figure out if now is the time to buy:

via Zillow News.

Seeking Alpha on Housing Prices

Tim Ballering — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 13:00:18 +0000

Housing & Real Estate

Little Hope for Housing by Jon D. Markman
Beware the Case-Shiller Lag by The Fundamental Analyst
Subprime WAS Profitable by Karl Smith
Home Prices Rose in June, But… by Zacks.com
More Evidence That Housing Has Stabilized by Calafia Beach Pundit
Bank Self-Dealing and the Supercharged Financial Crisis by Rortybomb
Home Prices Respond to Government Cheese by Karl Denninger
Case-Shiller Up, But Still Distorted by Housing Credit by Sold At The Top
False Hope for Housing From Case-Shiller by Tim Iacono

How Big Will the Housing Double-Dip Be?

Tim Ballering — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 23:05:33 +0000

There seems to be a growing consensus that home prices are headed down, not up, in the absence of free money from Uncle Sam, the only important question being the magnitude of the decline. Housing Wire reports on a few of the latest analysts’ estimates including Moody’s where the chart below was offered.

via Seeking Alpha.

America Is ‘Bankrupt Mickey Mouse Economy

Tim Ballering — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 20:40:24 +0000

America is a “Mickey Mouse economy” that is technically bankrupt, according to Jochen Wermuth, the Chief Investment Officer (CIO) and managing partner at Wermuth Asset Management.

“America today looks like Russia in 1998. Consumers, companies and the government are all highly indebted. America as a result is a bankrupt Mickey Mouse economy,” Wermuth told CNBC.

via CNBC.

Home Sales Plunge – Expect Price Drop

Tim Ballering — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 12:05:41 +0000

The expiration of a home-buyer tax credit in the spring was expected to damp buying, though less severely. Economists said the sales drop—together with a corresponding rise in the inventory of unsold homes—meant another decline in housing prices was on the horizon.

via WSJ.com.

The Recovery Has Stalled

Tim Ballering — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 12:03:03 +0000

Yesterday’s existing home data was ugly. It was coyote ugly. It was so bad that forecasters would probably be willing to chew off a foot to be able to get out from under their predictions. Yesterday’s data indicated that the pace of existing home sales, a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.83 million. Many expected the pace of home sales to decline now that the home buyer stimulus programs have expired, but the decline reported yesterday indicates the real estate market is severely impaired. A glut of homes, more restrictive lending standards and a poor job market are conspiring to keep the housing market in an impaired state.

via Seeking Alpha.