Why the Housing Market is 3X Worse Than You Think

April 4, 2011

The “shadow inventory” suggests the housing market isn’t likely to get better for a long time.  As of April 1, 2011, New Jersey has one of the highest levels of distressed housing inventory in the nation. CBS MoneyWatch.com 3/31/11

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Despite Resistance Mortgage Servicers Write Down Principal

March 30, 2011

Mortgage companies have already reduced home loan balances for more than 100,000 borrowers. Wall Street Journal 3/28/11

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Home Prices Fall For 6th Straight Month in January

March 29, 2011

The price of single family home in 20 major cities fell a non-seasonally adjusted 1.0% in January, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index released Tuesday.  This is the sixth straight monthly decline.  Prices have moved down 3.1% in the past year.  The only market where home prices rose in January was Washington D.C.  Market […]

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Slide in Existing Home Sales May Lead to Spring Discounts

March 22, 2011

Existing home sales sank 9.6% month over month in February and prices hit a nine year low.   Some believe this will set the stage for steep discounts in the Spring market.  Others believe that the housing market is years away from a meaningful recovery. Wall Street Journal 3/22/11

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Proposal Would Require 20% Down Payment

March 17, 2011

Banking regulators have proposed requiring home buyers to put down at least 20% of the purchase price to obtain the least expensive type of mortgage.  One proposal would also establish stricter requirements for refinances. Wall Street Journal March 2, 2011

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More than 23% of mortgaged homes are underwater

March 11, 2011

In a healthy housing market about 5 percent of homeowners are underwater but as of December 2010, more than 23.1 % of all mortgaged homes were worth less than the amount owed on the home.  In December home prices reached their lowest point since the housing bust in 11 of 20 major U.S. metro areas. […]

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Mortgage Scam Red Flags

March 10, 2011

Now that the housing bubble has burst and lenders have tightened credit, scammers are targeting the record number of U.S. homeowners facing foreclosure.  Don’t be fooled! Asbury Park Press 2/27/11

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Reduced Government Support For Mortgage Giants Will Lead To Higher Rates

February 26, 2011

  A recent government report proposing changes to the governments role in the mortgage market will likely lead to shorter term loans and higher rates.  There is even a good chance that the 30 year fixed-rate mortgage, today’s standard, will disappear. Asbury Park Press 2-25-11

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National Association of Realtors Data Doubted

February 26, 2011

Economists have raised concerns about NAR’s data for months and some believe its reports overstate existing home sales by as much as 20%. Wall Street Journal 2/25/11

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$5 Million Gift Tax Break Prompts Many to Craft New Estate Plans

February 16, 2011

“For the next two years, the gift-tax exemption jumps to $5 million from $1 million for individuals and to $10 million from $2 million for couples—meaning people can give away that much without paying a penny in taxes. ”  Many are responding by throwing away their old estate plans and making new ones before the favorable […]

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Cash Buyers Bargain Hunting Increases Prices in Depressed Cities

February 9, 2011

The harder a market has been hit, the higher the percentage of cash deals. Wall Street Journal 2/8/11

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Home Prices Sink Further

February 7, 2011

The Wall Street Journal’s latest quarterly survey of housing-market conditions found that prices declined in all of the 28 major metropolitan areas tracked during the fourth quarter when compared to a year earlier. Wall Street Journal 1/31/11

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