Good News In Housing Market 2012

January 19, 2012 By jrobins

Optimism Builds in Housing Market

Daily Real Estate News | Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Several recent indicators for the real estate industry are pointing to a market that is on the mend and entering recovery mode.

Housing experts’ predictions for the new year tend to center around a market stabilizing before entering a gradual, albeit very slow, recovery. However, the tone is more upbeat than it has been in years for the housing market.

Here are a few of the signs that are showing the market moving in a more positive direction:

Home sales: Existing home sales are expected to increase 12 percent this year, following a 2 percent jump last year, Moody’s Analytics predicts. The signs are already showing: In November, pending home sales — a gauge for future home buying — reached its highest level in 19 months, the National Association of REALTORS® reported. (Read more.)

New-home market: Coming off of what could be considered the worst year for new-home building ever recorded, the sector is expected to bounce back this year. New-home sales and starts were already showing a rebound in the last few months of 2011. Moody’s is predicting that single-family housing starts will increase 37 percent this year, and new-home sales will soar 74 percent.

Housing stocks: Investors are starting to get optimistic about the possibility of a rebound too, and are turning to home builder stocks. These equities have recently outperformed the broader stock market and the S&P 1500 homebuilding index has increased 38 percent since mid-October, USA Today reports.

Consumer confidence: With mortgage rates at record lows and housing affordability high, about 71 percent of Americans say now is a good time to purchase a home. Also, more Americans are optimistic that home prices will rise over the next year — about 26 percent say prices will rise in 2012, an increase of 4 percent over the last survey, according to Fannie Mae’s December National Housing Survey

Source: “Housing Outlook Is More Upbeat,” USA Today (Jan. 15, 2012) and “Consumers More Confident, Survey Says,” Deseret News (Utah) (Jan. 16, 2012)

Filed Under: Blog

The housing market update 1/2012

January 9, 2012 By jrobins

Fed Officials Call for More Housing Fixes

Daily Real Estate News | Monday, January 09, 2012

New programs and “housing policy interventions” are needed to help the real estate market rebound and boost growth in the overall economy, three Federal Reserve policymakers said Friday.

The latest statements join a range of calls by the Federal Reserve in the last week urging for more government intervention to help the housing market. Last week, the Fed released a 26-page white paper providing an outline on how the government needs to take more aggressive action to prevent home values from falling further, seek solutions to the foreclosure crisis, and loosen stringent underwriting standards that are keeping borrowers from securing mortgages or refinancing.

New York Fed President William Dudley said on Friday that the housing market is “only one factor behind the frustratingly slow” economic recovery, but it’s an “important one that deserves our attention.”

Dudley said that it’s important for monetary policy to complement actions taken by lawmakers in order to help stabilize home prices and bring about a recovery to the housing sector within the next year or two. He said programs are needed that are aimed at preventing additional foreclosures, easing burdens for home owners in refinancing mortgages, and getting more renters into REO properties.

“Forceful and effective housing policies have the potential to significantly influence the speed and strength of our recovery,” Fed Governor Elizabeth Duke said in separate comments made last week at an event in Virginia.

The Fed will hold its next policy-setting meeting Jan. 24-25.

Source: “Fed Officials Focus on Housing ; Emphasis put on Importance of Sector to Overall Economy,” Bloomberg News (Jan. 9, 2012) and “Fed Officials Push More Stimulus for Housing,” Reuters News (Jan. 9. 2012)

Filed Under: Blog

The current market- Chester County |Delaware County | Montgomery County

January 6, 2012 By jrobins

The doom and gloom hanging over the real estate market over the last several years has put downward pressure on home prices throughout the country.  While Florida and the Southwestern United States were hit the hardest in this real estate downturn the Northeast had its fair share of turmoil as well.  If one were to read the prevailing headlines from across the country it would be difficult to gain any positive perspective on the real estate industry as a whole, however, if you narrow your vision to our local market in Southeastern PA and more specifically, Chester County, there has been some very positive signs in the last year which may point to stronger 2012.

 

Consider the following statistics and their corresponding sources:

 

  • Overall sales activity for Residential properties in TREND’s MLS Coverage Area increased 10% in November 2011 compared to November 2010.  www.Trendmls.com
  • In Chester County PA the 3rd quarter of 2011 saw 15% more sales than the 3rd quarter of 2010.  www.Trendmls.com
  • In Delaware County PA the 3rd quarter of 2011 saw 19.4% more home sales than the 3rd quarter of 2010.  www.Trendmls.com
  • In Montgomery County PA there was a 24.5% increase year over year for the 3rd quarter home sales. www.Trendmls.com
  • Confidence among U.S. homebuilders rose in December for a third consecutive month, a sign of stabilization in the housing market. www.Bloomberg.com
Filed Under: Blog