Monthly Archives: December 2012

Cheap mortgages here to stay?

Posted on December 11, 2012 by grim

From the WSJ: Freddie Mac: Mortgage Rates to Stay Low, Property Values to Rise in 2013 Mortgage rates are likely to remain near record lows for the first half of 2013, while property values are expected to strengthen, said mortgage-finance … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, Mortgages, National Real Estate | 96 Comments

The “ratio of earnings to home prices seems different now than when we were starting out.”

Posted on December 10, 2012 by grim

From the Record: Baby boomers in need of buyers Empty-nesters Dan and Christa Mondoro put their five-bedroom Franklin Lakes house on the market last summer. Since their two adult daughters have moved out, Christa Mondoro said, “it just didn’t seem … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, New Jersey Real Estate | 108 Comments

Christie signs bill to expedite foreclosures

Posted on December 8, 2012 by grim

From NJBIZ: Experts react to N.J. bill to expedite foreclosure of vacant homes State lawmakers have scored a partial victory in their bid to tackle New Jersey’s foreclosure crisis, after Gov. Chris Christie signed a bill that would expedite the … Continue reading →

Posted in Foreclosures, New Jersey Real Estate | 60 Comments

Taxes on debt forgiveness impact loan mods too (expect it to be extended)

Posted on December 7, 2012 by grim

From CNBC: Housing Recovery Depends on Slashing Mortgage Debt Rising home prices are the foundation of today’s housing recovery. They are drawing much-needed buyers back to the market. Prices would not be rising if the number of foreclosures wasn’t falling. … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Employment, Housing Recovery, Politics | 70 Comments

Foreclosure (and short sale) machine still grinding

Posted on December 6, 2012 by grim

From Reuters: US Foreclosure Sales Pick Up in Third Quarter More U.S. homes in foreclosure were sold in the third quarter as lenders dealt with distressed properties at an earlier stage of the process, data from RealtyTrac showed on Thursday. … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Foreclosures | 129 Comments

Home Price Headwinds

Posted on December 5, 2012 by grim

From CNN/Money: There’s a home price recovery… but it’s really, really slow Just about everybody agrees that the housing market is finally recovering — but don’t expect big price gains. Nearly two-thirds of the nation’s housing markets will see price … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, National Real Estate | 114 Comments

North Jersey Contracts – November 2012

Posted on December 4, 2012 by grim

(Source GSMLS, except Bergen which is based off NJMLS) November Pending Home Sales (Contracts) ——————————- Bergen County November 2011 – 524 November 2012 – 535 (Up 2.1% YOY) Essex County November 2011 – 230 November 2012 – 265 (Up 15.2% … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, New Jersey Real Estate | 105 Comments

The Big Short Goes Long

Posted on December 3, 2012 by grim

From Bloomberg: Goldman Pushes Subprime ABX Index as Housing Rebounds: Mortgages Goldman Sachs (GS) Group Inc., which survived the U.S. real estate collapse five years ago with the help of derivative bets against subprime mortgages, is promoting the opposite trade … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing Recovery, National Real Estate | 133 Comments

The New American Household

Posted on December 1, 2012 by grim

From the NYT: Under One Roof, Building for Extended Families Tom and Kristin Moser’s new house — nearly 3,000 square feet in a development outside Tucson — has all the modern amenities, including solar panels and an open kitchen. But … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing Recovery, New Development | 69 Comments