Existing home sales fall to 4-year low in April
Supply of homes on market rises to 15-year high

The bottom of the housing sector is not upon us," said Bill Hampel, chief economist for the Credit Union National Association. The inventory of unsold homes on the market increased 10.4% to 4.20 million, an 8.4-month supply at the April sales pace, the largest supply in 15 years. Some of the gain should be seen as a normal increase for the spring selling season; the inventory data are not seasonally adjusted.
"The inventory figures are abysmal," wrote Tony Crescenzi, chief bond market strategist for Miller Tabak & Co., who said inventories are about 1.6 million higher than normal.
The sharp rise in inventories could show that sellers are testing the waters, said Lawrence Yun, senior economist for the real estate trade group.

MarketWatch

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Mechanics of a Stabilizing Housing Market

While the pace of state existing-home sales is still below the level a year ago, the latest statistics show that more states are showing improvement in sales of previously owned homes. NAR's first-quarter 2007 data indicates that 14 states and the District of Columbia posted increases in the sales pace compared to a year ago, up from only six states showing gains in the fourth quarter report. Prices, meanwhile, continue to favor buyers. NOTE: This article has a good breakdown of existing markets and how they vary in this slowdown and some good insight into the condo markets.

Realtor.org

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Why a Mortgage May Be Your Best (and Worst) Move

By Jonathan Clements

Playing the spread. If you need to borrow, you will be hard-pressed to do better than a home loan. Not only are interest rates typically low, but that interest is usually tax deductible. To get a mortgage, you need to own a home or agree to buy one. But once you have that debt, the effect is to leverage all your assets. That can be highly profitable.

Real Estate Journal

Mortgage Rates Edge up onFed Inflation Jitters

McLean, VA – "Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.21 percent with an average 0.4 point for the week ending May 17, 2007, up from last week when it averaged 6.15 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.60 percent.

The 15-year FRM this week averaged 5.92 percent with an average 0.4 point, up from last week when it averaged 5.87 percent. A year ago, the 15-year FRM averaged 6.20 percent.

Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) averaged 5.92 percent this week, with an average 0.5 point, up from last week when it averaged 5.89 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 6.23 percent.

One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs averaged 5.48 percent this week with an average 0.7 point, unchanged from last week when it averaged 5.48 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 5.62 percent. "

Freddie Mac

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Real Estate Weekly

"The spring home-buying season doesn't look like it is going to be the savior of the housing market. Yes, housing starts turned up a bit in April, but building permits -- a better indication of future activity -- hit a 10-year low. And home-builder confidence ebbed again as well.
And this week we got a look at quarterly existing-home sales numbers from the National Association of Realtors, which held just a glimmer of hope. Total state-by-state existing-home sales, including single-family and condo, were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.41 million units in the first quarter, down 6.6% from a 6.86 million-unit pace in the first quarter of 2006 but 2.4% higher than the fourth quarter 2006 level of 6.26 million -- not that the fourth quarter is a hot time for home sales to start with"

MarketWatch

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Selling a House? Commissions Are Now More Negotiable

By Aleksandra Todorova From SmartMoney.com

"Commissions are becoming more negotiable than used to be the case," Mr. White says. He chalks it up to several factors, including more competition from discount and a-la-carte brokers, who offer less comprehensive services than full-service brokers, but charge discounted sales commissions or offer buyers rebates upon closing. And then there's more consumer awareness of the market. Thanks to Web sites like Zillow.com, anyone with an Internet connection can find out what homes are for sale or recently sold in a given area."

The 6% Illusion

"In theory, of course, broker commissions are always negotiable. Setting up fixed commission rates has, in fact, been considered illegal since a 1950s Supreme Court ruling. But real-estate brokers certainly don't want you to know that. "The owners of the large firms want everyone to think the broker fee is 6%," says Jay Michael, a Realtor and founder of Estate Property Group, a boutique real-estate firm in Chicago. That firm, while a full-service brokerage, negotiates its fees with its clients, typically charging 4.5% to 5.5%."

Real Estate Journal

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Redfin fined $50,000, forced to alter blog

"The Northwest Multiple Listing Service has fined Redfin $50,000 and asked the company to stop publishing a popular blog in which the online real estate brokerage posted reviews of Seattle-area homes.
Jeff Coop, legal affairs manager at the NWMLS, said that it received at least nine complaints from real estate broker members who believed that Redfin's blog violated rule 190. That rule, which is frequently enforced, prohibits brokers from advertising another member's listing without permission. Coop said it is important that listing agents maintain control over how a property is marketed, noting that there have been instances of brokers placing inaccurate information about homes on sites like Craigslist."

John Cook's venture Blog

Spring looks like a washout for housing market

April is supposed to be one of the best months for the housing industry, when builders, lenders and real estate agents gear up for the busy spring selling season. But this year, it’s turning out to be one of the worst on record.

MSNBC

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Mortgage Rates Edge up on Fed Inflation Jitters

reddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®) in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 6.21 percent with an average 0.4 point for the week ending May 17, 2007, up from last week when it averaged 6.15 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.60 percent. The 15-year FRM this week averaged 5.92 percent with an average 0.4 point, up from last week when it averaged 5.87 percent. A year ago, the 15-year FRM averaged 6.20 percent

Freddie Mac

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Redfin Gets Its 15 in 60 Minutes

Its getting tougher For NAR to argue for the 6 percent commission as an industry when home prices have risen a lot more than that and services haven’t changed that much. NAR continues to put itself in the hot seat with no end in sight. Redfin is offering a rebate of up to 2/3% of the real estate agents share of the commission.

Matrix

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Power Tools on Technology
It came from Seattle

Redfin lets buyers do their own shopping with tools to help them research and find the home they'd like to buy, then offers the services of a real estate agent to assist in making a formal offer, negotiating the deal, lining up inspections and coordinating the closing
The company is barely a year old, and already "[o]ur numbers have gone from zero percent market share to about 2 percent [in the Seattle area]," CEO Glenn Kelman told the Seattle Times.
NOTE: is real estate tech savvy or touch savvy? hmmmm

National Association of Realtors

Home Sales Rate Fell 6.6 Percent in 1Q

Sales of existing homes in the U.S. are on track to hit 6.4 million this year, down 6.6 percent from the pace of a year ago, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday in the latest indication of the housing market's slowdown.

The report came on the same day as industry research firm RealtyTrac Inc. reported that mortgage lenders in April foreclosed on 62 percent more U.S. homes than a year ago as borrowers failed to keep up with loan payments.

Topix.net

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Mortgage Woes Force Banks To Take Hits to Sell Homes

A surge of foreclosures over the past year or so has left lenders struggling to sell a growing backlog of homes. Rather than relying on real-estate agents, the usual practice, some are turning to large-scale auctions to speed up the sale process.
At the San Diego sale, houses and condos typically sold for about 30% below the previous sale or appraisal prices. In a few cases, the discounts were around 50%.

A four-bedroom home in Oceanside, Calif., attracted a high bid of $495,000 at the auction, 33% below the sale price recorded in November 2005 for the property. One condo in San Diego sold for $120,000, less than half of its previous value.

Real Estate Journal

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Temporary unemployment: Not necessarily a barrier to a Mortgage

n many situations, temporary unemployment will not exclude a potential borrower from qualifying for a mortgage. It is not always necessary for a borrower to be employed in the same position for at least two years or even in the same field of work, depending on other factors.

Mortgage Bankers Association

Signs of Low Inflation Keep LongTerm Mortgage Rates Steady

Freddie Mac today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 6.15 percent with an average 0.5 point for the week ending May 10, 2007, down slightly from last week when it averaged 6.16 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.58 percent.

The 15-year FRM this week averaged 5.87 percent with an average 0.5 point, unchanged from last week when it averaged 5.87 percent. A year ago, the 15-year FRM averaged 6.17 percent.

Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) averaged 5.89 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point, up slightly from last week when it averaged 5.87 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 6.22 percent.

One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs averaged 5.48 percent this week with an average 0.7 point, up from last week when it averaged 5.42 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 5.62 percent

Freddie Mac

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Product Taps Home Equity Without Taking Out Loan

"A small San Francisco investment company, backed by a subsidiary of insurer American International Group Inc., is rolling out a product that lets homeowners tap into their home equity without moving or taking out a loan. The company, REX & Co., offers to pay homeowners cash now in exchange for a right to part of the proceeds when the home eventually is sold."

Real Estate Journal

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Shopping for the Best Mortgage

Shopping around for a home loan or mortgage will help you to get the best financing deal. A mortgage whether it's a home purchase, a refinancing, or a home equity loan is a product, just like a car, so the price and terms may be negotiable. You'll want to compare all the costs involved in obtaining a mortgage. Shopping, comparing, and negotiating may save you thousands of dollars

Your Property Path

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ONE BILLION dollars in assistance for subprime lending victims

NACA announces ONE BILLION dollars in assistance for subprime lending victims. While the predators are blaming the borrowers , NACA is the first to provide a solution to save peoples home.

NACA

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Bank of America Cuts Fees For Its Home Loans

By Ruth Simon and Valerie Bauerlein
"Looking to boost market share when loan demand has slowed, Bank of America Corp. has rolled out a no-fee mortgage aimed at home buyers.
Under the program, Bank of America won't charge borrowers for loan applications, title insurance, appraisals and flood certifications or require them to get private mortgage insurance. Typically, borrowers who don't put 20% down must get mortgage insurance or take out a "piggyback" loan, which combines a mortgage with a home-equity loan"

Real Estate Journal

SIGNS OF LOW INFLATION KEEP LONG TERM MORTGAGE RATES STEADY

:Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®) in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 6.15 percent with an average 0.5 point for the week ending May 10, 2007, down slightly from last week when it averaged 6.16 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.58 percent."

Freddie Mac

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Gloomy outlook from top U.S. homebuilders

“Twenty months into this housing downturn, we continue to face difficult conditions in most of our markets,” Toll’s chief executive officer, Robert Toll, said in a statement."
Subprime mortgages had helped drive the housing market from 2005 through last year. As the housing market reached a crescendo, home loans became more accessible for people with poor credit.

As defaults rose, lenders started pulling back on the easy money. A survey of bank loan officers by the Federal Reserve showed that the net percentage of banks tightening standards for mortgage loans jumped to 16.4 percent in the first quarter from 1.9 percent at the end of 2006.
According to Celia Chen, director of housing economics at Moody’s Economy.com, the housing correction is expected to last until the end of 2008, with prices falling by 3.6 percent this year and 2.9 percent next year. The market peaked in mid-2005.

MSNBC

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NAR Existing Home Sales by Region

	Vs. April	Vs. 2006
US	-8.4%	-11.3%
Northeast	-8.2%	-5.1%
Midwest	-10.9%	-13.7%
South	-6.2%	-9.7%
West	-9.1%	-16.7%

National Association of Realtors

Slump isn’t slowing vacation home sales

(Via AP)
According to the NAR "vacation homes were not hurt by the general slump in sales last year. Instead, vacation homes rose by 4.7 percent to a record of 1.07 million units, up from 1.02 million sales in 2005."

MSNBC

Credit Unions: The Silent Source

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According to Bob Tedeschi of the NY Times, "As a result of the sub prime lending crisis, even borrowers with good credit are struggling to find lenders....
"About 200 credit unions affiliated with the Credit Union National Association have offered a low-interest Home Loan Payment Relief mortgage since late 2005. The program is limited, with some exceptions, to borrowers with household incomes at or below their area’s median income."

New York Times

As US foreclosures mount, states step in

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The Christian Science Moniter via Yahoo News
• Ohio, which has one of the highest foreclosure rates in the country, started taking applications this week to give fixed-rate loans to homeowners with subprime, adjustable-rate mortgages who've seen their monthly payments skyrocket beyond their means.

• Colorado is considering a law that would make it a criminal offense for appraisers to falsely inflate the value of homes in mortgage proceedings.

• Legislation is also under consideration in Indiana that would create free consumer counseling for those facing mortgage problems.

• At least four states have set up task forces to study foreclosures and recommend solutions.

• At least a dozen states have enacted laws designed to crack down on fraud by so-called "foreclosure consultants" who claim to help homeowners in trouble.

Yahoo News

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Is it Better to Buy or Rent?

Here is a very nice little chart indicating that it is better to buy than rent AFTER about 11 years, based on certain assumptions. This fits right into our view that owning is still a plus, but flipping or short term attempts to "play a market" may not be wise now.

New York Times

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