Some good signs for a change....

Existing-home sales rose again in April with buyers motivated by the tax credit, improving consumer confidence and favorable affordability conditions, according to the latest survey. Existing-home sales increased 7.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.77 million units in April from an upwardly revised 5.36 million in March, and are 22.8 percent higher than the 4.70 million-unit pace in April 2009. Monthly sales rose 7.0 percent in March. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the gain was widely anticipated. “The upswing in April existing-home sales was expected because of the tax credit inducement, and no doubt there will be some temporary fallback in the months immediately after it expires, but other factors also are supporting the market,” he said. “For people who were on the sidelines, there’s been a return of buyer confidence with stabilizing home prices, an improving economy and mortgage interest rates that remain historically low.”

Home appraisals still fraught with uncertainty despite new code of conduct

Last year, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the New York State General Attorney created an agreement titled the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC), which prohibits lenders, mortgage brokers, and real estate agents from selecting and having any “substantive” communication with a home appraiser. HVCC was created to protect consumers against fraudulent appraisals, which some industry experts believe was a contributing factor to inflated home values. However, many lenders have turned to the use of third-party appraisal management companies and the practice has led to complaints.

MAKING SENSE OF THE STORY FOR CONSUMERS
HVCC, which may result in appraisers evaluating homes in areas with which they are not familiar and using comparables that are inaccurate, has caused delays in closing sales, and in some cases, undermined sales if the appraisals undervalue a home’s current worth.
HVCC applies to conventional, single-family loans that are sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. It does not apply to loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) or the Veterans Administration.
Through HVCC guidelines, borrowers are entitled to receive, free of charge, a copy of the home appraisal at least three days prior to closing, giving the borrowers more time to contest what they view as an inaccurate appraisal.
Borrowers and/or sellers who believe a home valuation is too low may appeal the valuation or request a second option. It’s important to note that the second valuation must be more than five percent higher than the first--anything less is considered an acceptable difference.
Appraisers are required to view the inside of homes being valuated, but not homes used as comparables. More often than not, the appraiser’s knowledge of the property is based solely on the description in the MLS or on the public land records. Yet, the previous owners may have removed appliances and caused other damages to the property. To guard against appraisers using non-comparable homes in the valuation, borrowers can work with their REALTOR® to review comparable homes in the neighborhood for differences the appraiser did not know about or failed to consider.

To read the full story, please click here

Job Gains Speed Up And More Seek Work

The Labor Department report, released Friday, showed jobs grew in a wide swath of the economy, from manufacturing to professional services, and offered reassuring signs that the U.S. economy is recovering. "We're on more solid ground after these data than we thought we were," said Alan Levenson, an economist for T. Rowe Price Associates. "That should reduce, at least at the margins, the concerns that ones might have had of the impact on our economy of what's going on in Europe."

The government said 290,000 jobs were created in April and it revised upward by a total of 121,000 the gains for the previous two months.

The jobless rate ticked up to 9.9% from 9.7% as 805,000 workers left the sidelines and entered or rejoined the labor force. The flood of new job seekers comes amid signs that employers are hiring, as often happens in the early innings of a recovery. "People are encouraged to come back in the labor force and start looking for jobs," said Julia Coronado, a BNP Paribas analyst. "It's good that they're not so discouraged anymore."

(more at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703338004575229932760855258.html)