Category Archives: Housing Recovery

Foreclosure 2.0 – Tsunami or Belly Flop?

Posted on July 23, 2012 by grim

From the Press of Atlantic City: Second wave of foreclosures starts to rise in New Jersey, region The long-expected second wave of foreclosures in states where courts delayed their processing appears to have begun in New Jersey and area counties, … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Foreclosures, Housing Recovery, New Jersey Real Estate | 142 Comments

June Existing Home Sales

Posted on July 19, 2012 by grim

From Bloomberg: Sales of Previously Owned U.S. Homes Probably Climbed in June Sales of previously owned U.S. homes probably rose in June, a report may show today, a sign the recent pickup in demand will be sustained. Purchases climbed 1.5 … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, National Real Estate | 165 Comments

Wealthy screw everything up again

Posted on July 18, 2012 by grim

From the IB Times: Wealthy Homeowners Threaten Housing Recovery As the U.S. housing industry begins to sputter with signs of life, wealthy homeowners face a different kind of problem: selling their posh condos, villas, and waterfront properties before the onset … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, National Real Estate, Politics | 271 Comments

Housing math more painful than trig.

Posted on July 16, 2012 by grim

From the WSJ: Yea! Home Prices Hitting Bottom. Now, the Bad News. This is a great time to buy a home in many parts of the country. There are signs that the downward price spiral is bottoming out. Mortgage rates … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, National Real Estate | 92 Comments

Foreclosure Friday

Posted on July 13, 2012 by grim

From the Star Ledger: Foreclosures drop in New Jersey The number of New Jersey homes in foreclosure dropped in the first six months of the year, according to a report from RealtyTrac, from 18,417 last June to 10,733 this year, … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Foreclosures, Housing Recovery | 180 Comments

44 Economists Agree: Housing is Bottoming

Posted on July 12, 2012 by grim

From the WSJ: Housing Passes a Milestone The housing market has turned—at last. The U.S. finally has moved beyond attention-grabbing predictions from housing “experts” that housing is bottoming. The numbers are now convincing. Nearly seven years after the housing bubble … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, National Real Estate | 161 Comments

Just pull the damn band-aid off already

Posted on July 11, 2012 by grim

From CNBC: As Foreclosures Ramp Up, New Roadblocks Ahead Fraudulent foreclosure practices, a.k.a. “robo-signing,” uncovered now nearly two years ago, opened a new wound in the foreclosure crisis that was in the process of healing. At big bank mortgage servicers … Continue reading →

Posted in Foreclosures, Housing Recovery | 203 Comments

North Jersey Contracts – June 2012

Posted on July 8, 2012 by grim

(Source GSMLS, except Bergen which is NJMLS) Pending Home Sales (Contracts) ——————————- Bergen County June 2011 – 747 June 2012 – 871 (Up 16.6% YOY) Essex County June 2011 – 340 June 2012 – 438 (Up 28.8% YOY) Hunterdon County … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, North Jersey Real Estate | 245 Comments

How much further can rents rise?

Posted on July 5, 2012 by grim

From Reuters: US apartment rents rise at highest rate since ’07 -Reis Renting an apartment in the U.S. became even more expensive during the second quarter, as vacancies set a new 10-year low and rents rose at a pace not … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, National Real Estate | 76 Comments

Trulia: Rents rising faster than prices

Posted on July 4, 2012 by grim

From CNN/Money: Rents keep rising, while home prices inch higher As if record low mortgage rates and beaten down home prices weren’t enough to get prospective home buyers off the fence, there’s another factor that has made the case for … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, National Real Estate | 32 Comments

CoreLogic HPI shows broad price gains in May

Posted on July 3, 2012 by grim

From CoreLogic: CoreLogic® Home Price Index Shows 1.8% Monthly Increase in May from April The CoreLogic Home Price Index (HPI) showed that home prices nationwide, including distressed sales, increased on a year-over-year basis by 2.0 percent in May 2012 compared … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery | 156 Comments

Housing Affordability back to year 2000 levels in Bergen (including taxes)

Posted on July 1, 2012 by grim

From the Record: Home prices coming down to earth in Bergen County, could signal market turnaround With typical prices below $400,000, and mortgage rates south of 4 percent, homes in Bergen County in 2011 reached their most affordable levels in … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery | 123 Comments

Friday Open Discussion and Legal Review

Posted on June 29, 2012 by grim

From Bloomberg: Eminent Domain Is Bad Ploy for Underwater Mortgages Officials in San Bernardino County, California, believe they have figured out a clever way to solve the county’s, and possibly the nation’s, housing problems. Detailed by a Cornell University professor, … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Foreclosures, Housing Recovery, Mortgages, Politics | 204 Comments

Spring strength continues into May

Posted on June 28, 2012 by grim

From MarketWatch: Pending home sales surge 5.9% in May to 2-yr high Pending home sales climbed 5.9% in May to match a two-year high, a trade group said Wednesday. The National Association of Realtors said its pending-home-sales index rose to … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery | 236 Comments

NY Metro prices continue to show year over year losses

Posted on June 27, 2012 by grim

From the Record: Home prices down 3.8 percent in region Despite indications that the national real estate market may be stabilizing, the region’s home prices continue to slide, the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller index said Tuesday. Home values in the New … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing Recovery, National Real Estate, New Jersey Real Estate | 141 Comments