OCTOBER ASKING PRICES RISE 2.9% YEAR-OVER-YEAR, BUT RENTS RISE FASTER AT 5.1%

Trulia today released the latest findings from the Trulia Price Monitor and the Trulia Rent Monitor, the earliest leading indicators available of trends in home prices and rents. Based on the for-sale homes and rentals listed on Trulia, these monitors take into account changes in the mix of listed homes and reflect trends in prices and rents for similar homes in similar neighborhoods through October 31, 2012.
 

Asking Prices Rise 0.7% Month-over-Month for Largest Year-over-Year Gain to Date

Full Story: http://info.trulia.com/trulia-price-and-rent-monitors-oct-2012

Foreclosure victims buying homes again

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac make people wait seven years after a foreclosure to approve a new home loan, but the Federal Housing Administration will approve loans after three years, providing the buyer has established good credit and the ability to pay the mortgage.

Full Story:  http://www2.realtoractioncenter.com/site/R?i=-vX0VLfcSskC8LVPjjMCsg

Home prices rise for fifth month in a row

The housing market picked up more momentum in August, as the average home price for 20 major cities jump 0.9 percent, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index.

Full Story: http://www2.realtoractioncenter.com/site/R?i=QvhS8CGkXu8vSVTOJaM1qw

Interest Rates.....Historic low!!!

California home prices rise in September; sales fall

A continued shortage of available homes for sale lowered California home sales in September, while the median price reached the highest level in more than four years, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) reported this week.

Full Story:  http://www2.realtoractioncenter.com/site/R?i=6sMgvn29NIPcc7GNE2CCxg

Asking prices up year over year in six out of seven swing states

Asking prices on for-sale homes increased 2.5 percent in September, according to the latest findings in the Trulia Price Monitor. Excluding foreclosures, year-over-year asking prices rose 3.5 percent. Meanwhile, asking prices rose 1.6 percent nationally quarter-over-quarter, seasonally adjusted, and 0.5 percent month over month, seasonally adjusted.

Full Story: http://www2.realtoractioncenter.com/site/R?i=sk-sGMC36wc9g7RsmFGt2A

C.A.R. releases 2013 California housing market forecast

California’s housing market will continue to recover in 2013, as home sales are forecast to increase for the third consecutive year and the median price to rise for the second straight year, according to C.A.R.’s “2013 California Housing Market Forecast,” released Tuesday.

The statewide median home price is forecast to increase a moderate 5.7 percent to $335,000 in 2013. Following a decrease in 2011, the California median home price will climb a projected 10.9 percent in 2012 to $317,000.

Full Story: http://www2.realtoractioncenter.com/site/R?i=ueb89iVr80mFRk1BP_MeBw

Landlord Must Disclose Notice of Default to Prospective Tenants

Starting January 1, 2013, every landlord who offers for rent a residential property containing one-to-four units must disclose in writing to any prospective tenant the receipt of a notice of default that has not been rescinded. This disclosure must be made before executing a lease agreement. If a landlord violates this law, the tenant can elect to void the lease and recover one month’s rent or twice the amount of actual damages, whichever is greater, plus all prepaid rent. If the lease is not voided and the foreclosure sale has not occurred, the tenant may deduct one month’s rent from future amounts owed. The written disclosure notice as provided by statute must be in English, Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, and Korean. A property manager will not be held liable for failing to provide the written disclosure notice unless the landlord has given the property manager written instructions to deliver the written disclosure to the tenant. This law will expire on January 1, 2018. Senate Bill 1191.

Mortgage rates at record low again

Freddie Mac's weekly survey of mortgage rates showed the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 3.49 percent from 3.55 percent the previous week. That matched the previous record low set in July. The fixed-rate 15-year mortgage reached a new record low of 2.77 percent, down from 2.85 percent a week earlier.

Full Story:  http://money.cnn.com/2012/09/20/real_estate/mortgage-rates/index.html?source=cnn_bin

Tax relief on forgiven debt set to expire Dec. 31, 2012

Unless Congress and the California State legislature take action, a break for mortgage principal forgiven in loan modifications or short sales will expire at year’s end.

The mortgage debt forgiveness issue is only one of approximately 60 expiring tax provisions that Congress appears unable to extend prior to its recess for the November elections.  Congress is pushing the extension of any expiring tax provision to the lame duck session, along with any increase in the debt ceiling, and any serious attempts to prevent the mandatory budget cuts agreed to during last year’s debt ceiling deal.

Full Story: https://www.ftb.ca.gov/aboutFTB/newsroom/Mortgage_Debt_Relief_Law.shtml

U.S. home prices make biggest jump in six years

Nationwide home prices shot up 3.8 percent in July, making their largest year-over-year leap since 2006, according to real estate data provider CoreLogic.

Read Full Story:  http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-home-prices-20120904,0,1983417.story

California home prices near 4-year high

California home sale prices came close to a 4-year high in July, with the pace of sales year-over-year growing for the fourth month in a row, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® reported.

The median home price in July for an existing single-family home was up 4.2 percent in June and nearly 13 percent from a year ago.

July’s median home price was the highest since August 2008.  July also marked the fifth consecutive month that the median price increased month-over-month and year-over-year.
 
Sales in July rose to an annualized pace of 529,230 homes, an increase of 15.3 percent compared with last July.

Full Story: http://lansner.ocregister.com/2012/08/20/california-home-sales-near-4-year-high/165628/

Asking prices rise for sixth consecutive month

Asking prices on for-sale homes – which lead sales prices by approximately two or more months – increased 0.5 percent in July compared with June, according to Trulia’s Price Monitor.  This marked the sixth consecutive monthly gain.  For the first time, a majority (62 out of 100) of large metros had year-over-year price increases.

Full Story:  http://info.trulia.com/trulia-price-and-rent-monitor-july-2012

Home Prices Rise in June

CoreLogic recently reported that home prices nationwide, including distressed sales, increased on a year-over-year basis by 2.5 percent in June 2012 compared to June 2011, according to its June Home Price Index report. On a month-over-month basis, including distressed sales, home prices increased 1.3 percent in June 2012 compared with May 2012. The June 2012 figures mark the fourth consecutive increase in home prices nationally on both a year-over-year and month-over-month basis.
Excluding distressed sales, home prices nationwide increased 3.2 percent on a year-over-year basis in June 2012. On a month-over-month basis excluding distressed sales, home prices increased 2 percent, the fifth consecutive month-over-month increase. Distressed sales include short sales and REO transactions.

Full Story: http://www.corelogic.com/about-us/news/corelogic-june-home-price-index-rises-2.5-percentrepresenting-fourth-consecutive-year-over-year-increase.aspx

For renters, buying a home pays off after three years on average

A new analysis by real estate website Zillow shows that, on average, a renter thinking about buying a home will reach what it calls the “break-even horizon,” after just three years.  The break-even horizon compares what it would cost to buy or rent the same home in a number of U.S. markets over time.
Full Story: http://www.latimes.com/business/realestate/la-fi-rent-or-own-20120802,0,6114437.story