A newsletter from DBRS asserts those states still reporting high levels of mortgage fraud risk may see their home values drop.
Read More »Housing Affordability Climbs Higher in Q4
Housing affordability rose close 1 percentage point up to 74.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012, according to the NAHB's Housing Opportunity Index.
Read More »Zillow: Home Values Reach 8 1/2-Year High
Home values rose for the 15th consecutive month in January, according to Zillow's most recent Real Estate Market Reports.
Read More »Paper Details Hurdles to Low-Price Housing Policies
There are nearly 400 mandatory inclusionary housing policies designed to low-priced housing within market-rate developments.
Read More »Report: Conditions Indicate Home Value Growth in 2013
Conditions are ripe for home values in 2013, according to January national housing data collected by Realtor.com.
Read More »Report: Gap Between Listing Prices, Closing Prices Narrows in 2012
The gap between the listing price and closing price of an average home sold continued to narrow last year as market conditions gave the advantage to sellers.
Read More »President Addresses Housing Concerns, Demands Congressional Action
In his State of the Union address, President Obama acknowledged the progress that has been made in the housing market with rising prices, increasing home purchases, and an uptick on construction. However, "even with mortgage rates near a 50-year low, too many families with solid credit who want to buy a home are being rejected," he said. Obama also proclaimed his support for expanding access to refinancing, calling on Congress to pass a refinance bill currently in the pipeline.
Read More »NAR: End of 2012 Sees Gains in Prices, Sales, Affordability
According to the NAR, the depleting share of lower-priced homes is contributing to price growth as distressed sales--foreclosures and short sales--diminish. The association found the national median price for an existing single-family home rose to $178,900 in Q4, up 10 percent from the fourth quarter of 2011. The increase marks the biggest year-over-year gain since the fourth quarter of 2005, when the median price was up 13.6 percent. Existing-home sales improved as well in Q4, rising to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.90 million.
Read More »Capital Economics: Household Wealth to Boost GDP in 2013
Capital Economics forecasts the S&P 500 equity price index will end 2013 close to the current level of 1,500 and expects home prices to rise in the neighborhood of 5 percent. In turn, the growth in household wealth, the firms says, could lift GDP by around 0.7 percent. The most recent Flow of Funds report for Q3 2012 showed net household wealth grew to about $64.7 trillion. Capital Economics says the Q4 report, due March 7, is likely to show an increase of household wealth to around $65.1 trillion.
Read More »Trulia: Asking Prices Post Major Gains, Rent Prices Cool in January
Asking prices rose dramatically in January as renting prices cooled off somewhat, according to the latest data in Trulia's Price and Rent monitors. The company's Price Monitor showed a 0.3 percent quarter-over-quarter rise in January (without seasonal adjustment). On a seasonally adjusted basis, prices increased 2.2 percent quarterly. While January's numbers signal a strong price recovery, Trulia's chief economist warned the month's gains could disappear in some areas.
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