New Home Sales Jump to an 8 Month High!! What?? Double Dip in Home Sales!!

Austin Texas: New home sales rose 17.5% in December to the highest level in eight months but compared with 2009 sales are down 7.6%.

The media enjoys the emotional rollercoaster by declaring new home sale are at an 8 month high but leaves waits a few lines to compare with the poor stats from the year before.

Now comes November 2011 home prices continuing the slump falling 1% compared with October.

Elected government officials continue to repeat that the economy is rebounding and worst is past. The signs show a double dip recession heading our way. Plus the CBO estimates that the government’s debt will be over 1.5 trillion for 2011. See what the numbers were that sent Greece and Europe over the edge and it should raise the hair on the back of your neck.

The bank needs to release their holdings and offer better loans. The government needs to reduce capital gains tax, step away from government health care, unfriendly business regulations and reduce excessive spending.

If this is done then the fear of a double dip recession should fade away – hopefully since the real estate market is a major sector of the US economy and it needs to be nurtured.


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December 2010 Austin Texas Real Estate Statistics

Austin Area Real Estate Maintains Sales Volume Trends, Price Stability

Austin Board of REALTORS® Releases November 2010 Real Estate Statistics

December 20, 2010 - According to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) report released today by the Austin Board of REALTORS®, the Austin real estate market continues the trends seen in recent months as the year begins to come to a close. 

The volume of Austin area home sales in November 2010 was 1,243, down 20 percent from the same month in 2009. Year-to-date, 16,477 homes have been sold, down only six percent compared to the same time period in 2009. 

Austin real estate also continued to hold value. For November 2010, the median price for single-family properties was $184,000, up three percent from November 2009. Year-to-date, the median price is $194,000, also up three percent from 2009. 

Homes spent an average of 90 days on the market in November 2010, 17 percent longer than in November 2009. Year-to-date figures show that overall homes have spent four percent fewer days on the market than in 2009. 

“As has been the case for much of 2010, year-to-date figures paint a clearer picture of market conditions than month-to-month comparisons,” said John Horton, Chairman of the Austin Board of REALTORS®. “That’s particularly true this month because we’re comparing results to a month in 2009 when the original homebuyer tax credits were set to expire, before a last-minute decision extended them through the first part of 2010.” 

He continued, “Despite the fluctuations created by the tax credits in 2009 and 2010, Austin’s real estate market has remained stable. Austin homes are holding their value—even slightly increasing—and year-to-date, they have sold more quickly than in 2009.” 

November 2010 Statistics

• $311,567,894 – Total dollar volume of single-family properties sold, down 16 percent from November 2009

• $184,000 – Median price for single-family homes, up three percent from November 2009

• 1,243 – Single-family homes sold, down 20 percent from November 2009

• 90 – Days on market, up 17 percent from November 2009

• 8,741 – Active single-family home listings on the market, up two percent from November 2009

• 1,260 – Pending sales for single-family homes, up two percent from November 2009

Year-to-Date 2010 Statistics

• $4,180,249,992 – Total dollar volume of single-family properties sold, down one percent from 2009

• $194,000 – Median price for single-family homes, up three percent from 2009

• 16,477 – Single-family homes sold, down six percent from 2009

• 76 – Days on market, down four percent from 2009

• 10,337 – Active single-family home listings on the market, up nine percent from 2009

• 18,495 – Pending sales for single-family homes, down six percent from 2009

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Massachusetts Court Foreclosures Invalid

AUSTIN TEXAS REAL ESTATE: A Massachusetts court ruled on Friday that some foreclosures are invalid because the banks could not prove they had the proper paperwork.

This will be a precedent of things to come because it is the first ruling by a state court on the issue of whether banks can foreclose on homeowners if can't prove they hold the mortgages.

Mortgage loans are like real property and can only be transferred by physically signing over the paperwork delivering it to the next holder. Under mortgage securitization loans get transferred many times after origination before landing in pools of mortgages that are sold to investors. But often times the banks simply didn't endorse the paperwork between steps.

Overall foreclosing entity must hold the mortgage at the time of the notice and sale in order accurately to identify itself as the present holder in the notice and in order to have the authority to foreclose under the power of sale.

The banks got sloppy with their paper trail and paid the price in the court room. This should be an eye opener for the banks to start digitally storing their contract and documents so the location and accessibility to the data is not lost.

Hello 5% Interest Rates for 2011

Austin Texas:  The days of near 4% mortgage rates has ended after a rate rise since November 2010. Is this going to be good or bad?

30-year fixed mortgage rate has risen to 4.82% from 4.15%, according to Freddie Mac's weekly mortgage market survey. In another survey, the rate has risen to 5.02% -- crossing the 5% benchmark for the second time in three weeks after being as low as 4.41% as recently as early November.

Forecasters now predict them to remain between 5% and 6% for all of 2011.

The increase will push mortgage payments higher for buyers. When rates rise from 4% to 5% it takes away about 10% of buying power.

Higher interest rates may stimulate the quiet housing market which has not bottomed out. The rise introduces an element of urgency for homebuyers to rush before rates spurt even more.

The main problem in the real estate market is that banks to streamline their underwriting process and start releasing their funds to issue more loans and to be less stringent.

If lenders return to more normal underwriting standards for creditworthy buyers and there would be a boost to the housing market.