Monthly Archives: January 2012

Texas Mortgage Market Update - For the week of January 30, 2012 - Getting ready for a recovery could be the theme of last week's housing reports. Pending Home Sales, after hitting a 19-month high in November, dipped a bit for December, yet came in 5.6% above where they were a year ago. The National Association of Realtors chief economist observed, "Even with a modest decline, the preceding two months of contract activity are the highest in the past four years outside of the homebuyer tax credit period."

Austin Mortgage Market Update - For the week of January 23, 2012 - Well, we can all make our way with a bit of a smile on our faces, courtesy of the latest Housing Starts numbers. At first blush, the December report seemed disappointing, down 4% for the month. But starts overall are UP 24.9% from a year ago and December's drop was all from multi-family starts, very volatile month-to-month. Single-family starts were UP 4.4% for the month and UP 11.6% for the year. No wonder the National Association of Home Builders confidence index went to 25, its highest reading since 2007.

Texas Mortgage Market Update - For the week of January 16, 2012 - Economist Fiedler, Assistant Treasury Secretary under Presidents Nixon and Ford, knew that wise forecasters give themselves lots of opportunities for revisions. This time of year, the focus is on forecasts and even though many will soon be revised, some are worth considering. The chairman of the Fisher Center for Real Estate at the University of California, Berkeley, feels home prices have bottomed and are increasing, though not rebounding, where there's strong job growth. But other economists anticipate a 5% decline in home prices over the next two years.

Texas Mortgage Market Update - For the week of January 9, 2012 - The latest opportunity in real estate came December 28, when the Federal Housing Administration extended the waiver of its "anti-flipping" rule through the end of 2012. This lets homebuyers, who need FHA-insured financing, purchase homes that were bought by the seller in the last 90 days. And it gives investors looking to rehab and flip properties an expanded market, including first-time homebuyers and others without large down payments, who need FHA-backed loans.

It's good to show your best face to the world as the new year begins (see Business Tip of the Week, below) and that just got easier to do. Last week's Pending Home Sales index from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) went UP 7.3% in November, hitting its highest level since April 2010! And that earlier reading was artificially boosted, as buyers rushed to beat the deadline for last year's home buyer tax credit.