New home prices plunge, sales soar

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- A big drop in the price of the typical new home sold in April spurred much better-than-expected sales, according to the latest government reading on the battered real estate and home building market released Thursday. New homes sold at an annual pace of 981,000 in April, up 16.2 percent from the revised 844,000 pace in March. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast an 860,000 rate in April. The gain in sales compared to March is the biggest jump in 14 years. But even with the April spike factored in, April sales came in 10.6 percent below year-earlier levels. The median price of a new home sold in April plunged 10.9 percent from a year earlier to $229,100. The new price reading was also down 11.1 percent from the March reading.
To read the rest of the article go to CNN.com

Bernanke Plays Down Threat From Subprime Defaults

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Thursday that the financial system can withstand the fallout from the subprime-mortgage market "without serious problems."

"We have spent a bit of time evaluating the financial implications of the subprime issues, tried to assess the magnitude of losses, and tried to determine how concentrated they are," Mr. Bernanke said in response to a question following a speech here. "There is a sense that, although there is always a possibility for some kind of disruption ..., the financial system will absorb the losses from the subprime mortgage problems without serious problems."

Read the whole article here

Lenders Seek to Modify Rather Than Foreclose Mortgages

As home foreclosures mount, mortgage companies are knocking
on doors, sending letters and making phone calls with a
simple message for struggling homeowners: They'd rather
modify your loan than foreclose. EMC Mortgage Corp.,
specialist with a $78 billion portfolio of subprime loans --
for homeowners with weak credit -- this week launched a
50-person team it calls "the Mod Squad." Members will spend
an unlimited time on the phone with troubled borrowers,
sifting through their bills to compute a workable monthly
payment. In an industry that often rewards workers for
getting off the phone quickly, the team is preparing to
speak to just three people a day. To read the entire
article go to FoxNews.com.

Pricing turnaround in Phoenix

The difference between the prices Phoenix homeowners are asking for their properties and what buyers are paying is narrowing, says an article by the Arizona Republic. The gap, which hit a record high in mid-2005, is the smallest it's been since mid-2004. This narrowing could signal a potential recovery for the local market, the Republic says, as buyers and sellers start to agree on prices. The article adds that in the metro area, the market tends to vary neighborhood by neighborhood -- some houses are selling at their asking prices in metro Phoenix, while in some fringe areas of the city, it's more of a buyer's market.

What You Can Do to Avoid Foreclosing on Your House

By Terri Cullen
From The Wall Street Journal Online

The rate of residential home foreclosure filings dropped dramatically in April, down 14.3% from the previous month, according to Foreclosures.com. Still, year-to-date the foreclosure-filings rate is higher than the same period a year earlier.

What to Do: Depending on your lender, you may be able to restructure your mortgage if you're late in making monthly payments. The delinquent mortgage payments may be added to the mortgage balance, or the homeowner could be given additional time to make catch-up payments. If you can no longer afford your adjustable-loan rate, don't count on bankruptcy court to save your home: Changes in the bankruptcy law in 2005 have made it harder for homeowners to qualify for a "fresh start" and prevent foreclosure. Instead, work with a qualified credit-counseling service to restructure your non-mortgage debt to free up cash-flow. Federal help may also soon be on the way: Mortgage-finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are planning to introduce alternative financing to help homeowners with subprime loans avoid foreclosure.

Taking a Dip
Nationwide the number of foreclosures dropped in April.

Supply of Homes Continues To Grow, Reflecting Weak Sales

The number of homes listed for sale in 18 major metropolitan
areas at the end of April was up 7% from March, according to
data compiled by ZipRealty Inc., a national real-estate
brokerage firm in Emeryville, Calif. The data cover listings
of single-family homes, condos and town houses on local
multiple-listing services.
The increase was above the seasonal norm. Over the past 22
years, home inventories nationwide have increased an average
of 4.5% in April from March, according to Credit Suisse
Group. Spring is the busiest time of year for home shopping,
as families with children try to get settled ahead of the
next school year.
Go to RealEstateJournal.com to read the entire article.

Home Sales, Prices Will Continue To Slide, NAR Predicts

In its latest forecast for the real-estate market, the National Association of Realtors projected that existing home sales will fall 2.9% this year to 6.29 million, compared with its previous forecast of a 2.2% decline. The drop-off for new home sales is expected to be more severe. The NAR said new home sales are likely to fall 18% to 864,000, compared with the prior forecast of a 14% drop.

Read the whole article are RealEstateJournal.com

London homes world's most expensive: survey

London beat the glamour of Monaco, New York, Hong Kong and Tokyo to become the world's most expensive place to buy residential property, a survey showed on Tuesday. Residential property in the British capital costs on average 2,300 pounds per square foot, or 36,800 euros (49,889 dollars) per square meter, according to the 'Wealth Report 2007.' That beat nearest competitor Monaco, where property costs an average of 2,190 pounds per meter or 35,000 euros per square meter.

To read more go here.

April Numbers Fall

Although the official numbers will not be out for another 2 weeks it is safe to say April sales were slower than March sales.  I believe this is a sign of things to come.  I do not anticipate May sales improving much over April if at all.  Unfortunately some sellers are still overpricing their homes.  This is just causing an increase in supply and as a result buyers are either sitting around waiting for the prices to drop or picking and choosing the best looking homes out there.  There are buyers out there, you just need to make your home more attractive to those buyers.

Fix-It Projects to Speed The Sale of Your House

For some sellers, a little extra work can mean not only a difference in how smoothly the sale goes or how much they can ask for their home but also if they get to the closing table at all in an uncertain market.

"Talk to Realtors and they will tell you anything you do cosmetically to increase curb appeal is going to help the resale value," said Sal Alfano, editor of Remodeling magazine.

For some good advice on getting your home ready for selling read this article at the RealEstateJournal.com

Four Renovations That Won't Get You a Higher Selling Price

Four Renovations That Won't Get You a Higher Selling Price
From MarketWatch
These are tough times for home sellers. If you're one of
them, it can be tempting to launch into a series of home
renovations to make your home more desirable.
But be discerning about your choices -- certain renovations
can actually decrease the value of your home. Money magazine
suggests avoiding these four renovations at all costs:
1) Swimming Pool
2) Home Addition
3) Trendy Finishes
4) Jacuzzi
To find out more visit www.realestatejournal.com

March Sales

So far 2007 is shaping up to be much like 2002.

The number of sales for January, February and March look very
much like the numbers from 2001 and 2002. 

2007 sales are about 10% below the 2003 sales figures.
In order for sales to reach 2003 figures there will need to be 7400 homes sales.

With the average price of homes on the market at $469k, I do not see
the situation improving for at least another couple of months.

Lennar profit drops 74 percent!

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Lennar Corp., the No. 3 U.S. home
builder, posted a 74 percent plunge in profit on Tuesday and
withdrew its earnings forecast, saying the industry's spring
selling season has failed to bloom and its outlook for the
rest of 2007 does not look bright.

To read the whole article go here.

Be Aware of Lock Bumping!

Lock bumping is a technique that thieves use to gain access to your home even when the
door is locked. It is amazingly simple and takes only seconds for a criminal to break into your house. There are a bunch of videos posted at YouTube and on other websites thatteach people how to lock bump.

To find out about lock bumping watch the following video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hr23tpWX8lM&eurl

December Stats are out

For only the second time in the last five years the average homes sold in December increased.

Is this a sign of things to come? Hopefully. The number of homes sold for December are 5,411. This is an increase of 1.37% over November sales and 12.8% below the average number of sales for December. However, with December traditionally being the slowest time of the year to sell a home, the increase in sales over November shows some encouraging signs for things to come. The average sales price dropped by 1.61% in December which is not a very encouraging sign. So we are still in a state of flux when it comes to real estate in the Phoenix area. The current number of homes on the market had been dropping all the way until December 31^st. Starting on January 1^st the number of listings started to increase for the first time since October. As of this morning we are currently at 43,632 active listings on the market, 52.9% of those homes have been on the market for over 3 months. As the prime selling season approaches it will be interesting to see what the trends show. January usually has considerably fewer sales than December, will that be the case this year? I do not believe that will be the case this year. If anything January sales will be very close to the December numbers.

We shall see soon enough.

Arizona is fastest growing state

Arizona has officially become the fastest growing state in the union.
There is on average 584 people moving to Arizona every DAY!!!
That is over 4000 per week and over 17500 per month.
This fact alone should prove to be a boon for Arizona and Phoenix.
Those moving to the state need a place to work and a place to live.
By the end of 2007 the real estate market should be buzzing along again.

It looks like it is definitely going to be a Happy New Year!

To read the CNN article follow the link below
http://tinyurl.com/ye2yzg

November Sales Data Preview

This time of year is always slow for selling a home.

I always suggest to my clients that they should wait until

February of the following year to list their house if at all possible.

As anticipated, sales are down in November.  We can also
anticipate slower sales in December.  It is possible to sell during
December.  If you must sell make sure to price your home reasonably.

October Stats

The stats for October are out and things are looking good.
The total number of sales for October are 5,599 which is
only 9 less sales than September.
The average drop in sales from September to October is 6%.
Last year the drop was over 14%.
Yes the number of sales in October are off from the prior
two years, but the prior two years were out of the norm.
The 5 year average for the number of sales in October is
6474.67.

The average sales price for October was $330,200
This is an increase of 1.76% from September 2006 and a
decrease of 1.99% since January 2006.
October 2006 average sales price is 2.74% higher than
October 2005.

I believe it is more meaningful to take a 6 month rolling
average instead of a month by month average
because individual month sales prices can be influenced by a
few very high priced home sales.
It also gives a better feel for the overall trend.

The 6 month rolling sales price average for October is
$335,267.
Year to date the rolling average has increased 3.58% and is
an 8.45% increase from October 2005.

The above stats were taken from the from the Arizona
Regional MLS Statistics website.
Links are provided below:

http://www.armls.com/pdfs/SoldChartOct06.pdf
http://www.armls.com/pdfs/ListChartOct06.pdf

Builder Financing

The use of builder financing may not be your best option.

When buying a new home, most people use the preferred lender of the builder. Builder’s often offer incentives to get you to use their preferred lender. The article below points out that buyers should shop around. It might make more sense to use an outside lender.

“To make sure you're getting a good deal, ask the builder not only for the mortgage rate, but also for details on closing costs, points, any fees that will be paid to the lender or third parties, and the terms of the loan. Prof. Guttentag advises comparing that offer to a quote for the same mortgage obtained on the same day from an online lender. He also suggests shopping for financing at the same time you look at houses.”

Read the whole article here.

Platinum Realty Network
www.jimgruler.com

October Data is looking good

October is now over and it looks like there were at least as many sales in October as there were in September.

Usually there is a decline in sales for October as we get deeper into fall.  This increase in sales combined with
the fact that we are now below 47,000 active listings for the first time in a while indicates to me that some sellers
are finally getting the picture and allowing their listings to expire or are taking their houses off the market.  I hope
that this trend continues throughout November and December so 2007 starts off with a more reasonable inventory.

With still just over 46% of all listings being on the market for more than 90 days, something has to give.