While the real estate market may not be performing at its record highs of the last few years, most Americans (and foreigners) still strongly belive that home ownership is still the best investment one can make. Buying a home in today's real estate market, particularly in certain parts of Scottsdale and Phoenix, is a very smart move, according to many analysts who are expert on the Scottsdale and Phoenix metro area. Read more about this information here....
Friday, November 23, 2007
If You Bought A Home In The Boom, You May Have Negative Equity
Those homeowners who bought their home in the 2004 - 2005 boom market may have a home with negative equity in today's market. What homeowners need to remember above all else is that the market is cyclical, and will rebound over the next few years. This is a normal cycle for the housing market, and both home buyers and home sellers need to keep that in mind when they are looking to buy a home or sell a home right now. Read the full article....
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Smaller home-price spread suggests rebound
It's all in how you look at the numbers.
Home listings across metropolitan Phoenix remain at record levels, hovering above 55,000, not good news for homeowners trying to sell.
Resales fell to their lowest monthly level in several years in September. Foreclosures continue to climb, also not great news for sellers.
On the flip side, interest rates slipped this week, and with all the listings, there are many deals to be found in the Valley's housing market, real-estate agents say. Translation: That's good news for buyers because it's a great time to purchase if you have decent credit and plan on holding onto a home until prices rebound.
But one current indicator bodes well for sellers, buyers and the entire real-estate market. The spread between the price at which Valley homes are listed and at what they are selling is much lower than it was six months ago.
It means buyers' and sellers' expectations are more in sync, and that eventually should translate to more sales.
According to data from real-estate firm John Hall & Associates, the median price of metro Phoenix homes listed in September was $265,906, and the median price of houses sold was $234,900.
There's a spread of a little more than $31,000 between the two. In February, the spread between listing and sales prices was $43,000. In February 2006, as the market was starting to slow, the spread was $50,000. The shrinking spread between buyers' and sellers' expectations is a sign the housing market is correcting, and a rebound almost always follows a correction, particularly in the Valley.
Metro Phoenix's home prices are catching the attention of big lenders.
In the past few weeks, parts of Maricopa and Pinal counties have been put on housing "watch lists," or lists of "declining markets."
That usually means they will fund less of a loan on a property in case prices fall more.
For example, if a borrower was able to get a loan for 90 percent of the purchase price of a home last year, now a growing number of lenders only will fund 85 percent of the price.
But the Valley isn't alone on these lists. Lenders also are watching carefully the other markets across the country that saw big run-ups during the boom of 2004-05.
Foreign Cash Could Provide Much Needed Relief for U.S. Housing Market Thanks to Weak Dollar
With the U.S. dollar weakening against the Euro, and homes for sale in the U.S. off by at least 7% - 12% in most areas, many housing markets are becoming an attractive commodity to foreign investors. This may be one way that we jump-satrt the housing market in mid-2008. Full Article>>>>
Fed Officials Hint At No Rate Cut In December
The market reacted dismally last week to a slew of bad economic news, not least of which was that The Fed may choose to not cut the prime lending rate further in it's Decmebr session. Given the woes of the housing market and miserable home sales data, many question why the Federal Reserve Chief, Ben Bernanke, would choose such a path. The answer, in short order, is that Mr. Bernanke is attempting to establish himself on his own merit, and wishes to stand firm on his believe that the chief concern is to curb any possibility of inflation. Downward pressure will come from the White House, since the Bush administration wants to do everything it can to ensure his Republican party puts the next President in the White House. An economy which is barely limping along will not help his cause. Read full article
Home Invasions Up Sharply...What Are They?
There has been a significant rise in the number of home invasions recently. But what are home invasions? They differ from home burglaries in that the intruder is hoping to confront the homeowner, since the targeted home is in a wealthy area. The intruder believes that if they confront the homeowner they can force the owner to open a secret safe on the premises, or supply the intruder with a PIN number or credit cards. Read the article below for the whole story, and ways to safeguard yourself.
5 Ways to Survive The Housing Slump
Tired of all the negative media about how bad the housing market is? One expert shares his thoughts about homes for sale, the housing market and the recovering economy. Here's his take:
It may still pay to sell now instead of later. With home values down, some people may be inclined to hold off listing a home in the hope of a quick recovery. But if Talbott is correct, home prices have only begun to fall, and someone who can sell his home for 5 or 10 percent less than what he thought it was worth during the boom would do very well. Read the full article
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