Monthly Archives: May 2007

Housing related employment expected to decline

Posted on May 22, 2007 by grim
Posted in Economics, National Real Estate | 3 Comments

From the Mortgage Bankers Association: Trends in Housing-Related Employment During the housing boom years, the housing market was the engine for employment and economic growth. The jump in construction employment and other employment in housing-related industries helped to offset job … Continue reading →

Are housing concerns overblown on on-the-mark?

Posted on May 21, 2007 by grim
Posted in Housing Bubble, New Jersey Real Estate, Risky Lending | 54 Comments

From NJBIZ: This Housing Slump Is for Real but Overblown NJBIZ: How have home prices in New Jersey behaved in this slowdown? Otteau: Home prices in the state declined in 2006 by 6 percent to 12 percent, depending on the … Continue reading →

“I have no idea how they’re making it on their incomes.”

Posted on May 21, 2007 by grim
Posted in Economics | 113 Comments

From USA Today: Wealth gap pits young versus old Prashant Tungare arrived in the United States in 1984 with a wife, a child and $500 in his pocket. Today, the India-born American citizen is a prosperous computer specialist at Wachovia … Continue reading →

Mammoths decend on the streetscape

Posted on May 21, 2007 by grim
Posted in New Development, New Jersey Real Estate | 9 Comments

From the NY Times: Living Larger, and Drawing Fire LIKE the many Eskimo words for snow, a multitude of nicknames exist for the oversize houses commonly referred to as McMansions, and they mirror the uneasiness over the spread of the … Continue reading →

Cracking down on mortgage fraud

Posted on May 21, 2007 by grim
Posted in National Real Estate | 2 Comments

From the NY Times: Mortgage Fraud Is Up, but Not in Their Backyards The three women call themselves the All-Broad Fraud Squad. Nearly a decade ago, concerned that mortgage fraud was threatening their pastoral towns, the women — two full-time … Continue reading →

Ever-changing demographics

Posted on May 21, 2007 by grim
Posted in Economics, New Jersey Real Estate | 6 Comments

From the Asbury Park Press: Hispanic surge has N.J. still growing Vineet Agarwal moved to New Jersey four years ago from his native India, becoming one of the 310,000 residents the state has added in the first six years of … Continue reading →

Weekend Open Discussion

Posted on May 20, 2007 by grim
Posted in General | 289 Comments

This is the time and place to post observations about your local areas, comments on news stories or the New Jersey housing market, open house reports, etc. If you have any questions you wanted to ask earlier in the week … Continue reading →

“New Jersey’s real estate market continues to be in a slump.”

Posted on May 20, 2007 by grim
Posted in Housing Bubble, New Jersey Real Estate | 14 Comments

From the Asbury Park Press: Waiting for a boost Lacey residents Preston and Kelly Tripet figured that their three-bedroom ranch house would sell fairly quickly after they priced it at $339,900 in late January. “Everyone loves the house, but so … Continue reading →

If they build, will anyone buy?

Posted on May 20, 2007 by grim
Posted in New Development, New Jersey Real Estate | 9 Comments

From NorthJersey.com: $500M development could still be tainted after cleanup A developer is weeks from breaking ground on more than 700 homes at the former Curtiss-Wright engine plant, six years after the site was sold with a deed restriction that … Continue reading →

Appraisal fraud crackdown begins in NY

Posted on May 19, 2007 by grim
Posted in Housing Bubble, National Real Estate | 1 Comment

From Bloomberg: New York State Subpoenas Appraiser, Broker in Probe New York State is investigating Manhattan real estate practices, seeking information about whether brokers pressured appraisers to inflate property values as prices doubled in the last five years. Attorney General … Continue reading →

Credit spigot tightens

Posted on May 19, 2007 by grim
Posted in Economics, National Real Estate | 1 Comment

From HSH Associates: Mortgage Rates Higher, Lending Standards Tighter Mortgage rates ticked a little higher this week, with the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rising by three basis points (.03%) to 6.38%, according to the nation’s leading publisher of mortgage prices. … Continue reading →

“Many of the people out there that have houses, shouldn’t”

Posted on May 18, 2007 by grim
Posted in Housing Bubble, New Jersey Real Estate, Risky Lending | 7 Comments

From the Herald News: Loan fraud seen as economic threat Friday, May 18, 2007 By HEATHER HADDON Two weeks ago, Pedro Rives set his sights on buying a new home on East 26th Street in Paterson. But after hearing so … Continue reading →

22% of homes purchased by single women

Posted on May 18, 2007 by grim
Posted in Economics, National Real Estate | 1 Comment

From the Phily Daily News: Single women, looking to buy, turn to condos BACK IN the day, women thought homeownership came with a husband and 2.5 kids. Not any more. At least 22 percent of all homes sold in the … Continue reading →

NJ mortgage fraud up 250% in 2006

Posted on May 17, 2007 by grim
Posted in New Jersey Real Estate, Risky Lending | 116 Comments

From Inman News: Mortgage fraud climbs 30% With an industry database showing a 30 percent increase in loans involving suspected mortgage fraud in 2006, the Mortgage Banker’s Association is asking Congress to set aside $31.25 million over five years to … Continue reading →

NJ shore prices dip, “housing market is still unwinding”

Posted on May 17, 2007 by grim
Posted in Housing Bubble, New Jersey Real Estate | 9 Comments

From the Asbury Park Press: After years on rise, home prices at Shore ebb Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 05/16/07 BY MICHAEL L. DIAMOND The median home price in central New Jersey fell 3.4 percent during the first … Continue reading →