September 2011 Real Estate News
What’s the Buzz?
That's how long it's been since NCAA football officially ended with the BCS national championship game. FINALLY, the wait is over, and college football has returned! Looking for Bright Spots July was a fairly mediocre month for home sales in Arizona (but better than much of the country). Nationally, ales of new single-family homes for July came in at a preliminary figure of 298,000 -- which is down slightly from June, but up nearly 7% from a year ago. The average sales price of new homes during the period was $272,300, up 1% from June and up 8% from July of 2010. However, considering that July was the month that we appeared to be racing the debt ceiling clock to Armageddon, flat month-over-month performance on new home sales is actually a good thing. While current levels of sales volume are anemic, and probably will not see substantial recovery for another couple of years, the stabilization in prices is an important development. Flat volume and stable prices are the first step in consumers regaining confidence in considering purchasing a new home. For some, both new and resale housing may become an attractive investment option when compared to a faltering stock market. In fact, at The Kennedy Group we are seeing more and more of this with local investors. Been Waiting for "The Bottom"? The following chart depicts median home prices, average interest rates, and total house payment (with P & I) for each month in the past year. Although there has certainly been some movement in all three areas, if you bought and financed a "median" price home today, your total monthly payment would be $4.40 less than a year ago. Was it worth the wait?
Please keep us in mind with all your Real Estate needs (don’t forget to refer your friends to us). We are always looking for new buyers and sellers, so if you know of anyone planning to buy or sell a home, we would appreciate you pointing them our way! And be sure to watch for our detailed statistics for the local real estate market mid-month!
Bonnie & Chuck Kennedy
In this edition: · July Housing Scorecard Shows Home Price Improvement · Foreclosure filings in U.S. plunge to lowest in four years · Phoenix REOs now less than 30% of existing-home sales · Phoenix and Atlanta Will Be Best New-Home Markets in U.S · Mortgage Rates Lowest in Over 50 Years · Stop Renting and Buy While Homes are Most Affordable · Is Housing A Safe Haven Again? July Housing Scorecard Shows Home Price Improvement RISMEDIA, August 10, 2011—U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury recently released the July edition of the Obama Administration’s Housing Scorecard—a comprehensive report on the nation’s housing market. The latest housing data offer continued mixed signals as home prices improved slightly but showed continued strain from foreclosures and distressed homes. Also, as more homeowners secure mortgage relief, fewer borrowers entered the foreclosure pipeline in June. Click here for complete article. Foreclosure filings in U.S. plunge to lowest in four years Aug. 11 (Bloomberg) – U.S. foreclosure filings dropped 35 percent last month to the lowest level in almost four years as lenders and state and federal agencies increased efforts to keep delinquent borrowers in their homes, RealtyTrac Inc. said. Click here for complete article. Phoenix REOs now less than 30% of existing-home sales August 11th, 2011 – Foreclosed homes now make up less than 30% of the existing-home sales in the Phoenix area for the first time in more than two years, according to a report from the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University. The percentage of existing homes for sale that were real-estate owned clocked in at 29% in July, representing the fifth straight month of declines. In January and February, foreclosures represented 43% of the existing-home transactions in the market. The rate fell to 38% in March, 36% in April, 35% in May, 31% in June, and finally, to 29% in July. Click here for complete article. Phoenix and Atlanta Will Be Best New-Home Markets in U.S Phoenix, where foreclosures have surged and prices plummeted since the U.S. housing bubble burst, and Atlanta are the best potential markets for the sale of newly built homes, Barclays Capital said in a report today. Click here for complete article. Mortgage Rates Lowest in Over 50 Years Stop Renting and Buy While Homes are Most Affordable If you're currently renting and have dreamed of owning a home, now may be the perfect time. Trulia.com is reporting that during the month of July, buying was cheaper than renting in 74% of the country's 50 largest cities. Click here for complete article. Is Housing A Safe Haven Again? With mortgage rates retreating to near record-low levels again and home prices seemingly bottomed out, housing may finally be a safe place to park capital once again. With such volatile markets worldwide, a house provides a solid tangible asset that may not appreciate rapidly, but which is not likely to decline substantially from current levels either. Additionally, with many Americans having a newly soured attitude thanks to the housing bust, rental properties seem like an attractive option. Click here for complete article.
U.S. averages as of September 1, 2011: 30 yr. fixed: 4.26% 15 yr. fixed: 3.39 % 30 yr. jumbo: 4.87% |
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Mortgage Rates