With the announcement of "Existing-Home Sales Record Another Big Gain, Inventories Continue to Shrink"  today, many have already jumped on the band wagon as to an extended and upward home purchase season.

There may be some truth to this with the extension and expansion of the tax credit along with the government subsidized, ultra-low fixed mortgages. It's not whether it can continue, but for how long.

Life is all about ups and downs. This chart provided by Bill McBride of Calculated Risk definitely illustrates the natural ebb and flow of the real estate industry based on Existing-Home Sales. Will the current surge continue at it's current pace? Most likely not.

That is okay. Real Estate Is Cyclical So Let's Embrace It.

Did you hear? Existing-Home Sales Jump To Highest Level in 2-1/2 Years as reported early this morning. According to the official release from the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) existing-homes sales surged a surprising 10.1% in October.

The only thing surprising about this number is the fact that many in the real estate industry had not expected or anticipated such an increase. What's even more surprising is that with the new peak in existing-home sales report that forecasts are being revised for the recovery of the housing market effective today.

Let's rewind and figure out what today's report really means and how the real estate industry got to this point.

To begin with, according to the NAR Existing-Home Sales Methodology the NAR capture 30-40% of all existing-home sale transactions with its monthly survey. Before they can become an existing sale, a contract would have had to been written which generally involves the services of a Realtor®.

This would have been measured by the Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI). The interesting thing about this index is that it attempts to predict future sales. According to NAR the PHSI only accounts for 20 percrnt of all transactions of which 80% close within 60 days while the remainder close within 4 months.

Do you remember what the headlines were a couple of months ago? Let me give you a hint. It had to do with the steady growth in the Pending Home Sales Index. This latest report will definitely create even more confusion to home sellers and buyers throughout the country.

For all the positive spin the media is broadcasting across the news wire, there are some startling facts hidden within the report. Did you also hear that the national median home price dropped 7.1% and that 30% of all sales in October were distressed sales. Try explaining that to sellers.

Existing-Home Sales Up, But Not All It's Cracked Up To Be!

The holiday feeling is stirring in the air and in shopping centers everywhere. Due to another holiday shortened week, there will be plenty of economic reports and news events that will keep home shoppers on the edge of their seat.

Monday will start with October's Existing Home Sales and expectations are for signs of more improvement as this will reflect all the completed purchases that went under contract back in June and July.

All eyes on Tuesday will be on the revision to 3rd Quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Initially reported at a blistering 3.5% growth rate, it is expected that GDP growth will be revised downward to 3.0%. This will be important as it calms the fear of hyper-inflation jumping back into the economy. Also on Tuesday will be the release of November's Consumer Confidence Index (CCI), which provides insight on consumers willingness to spend. 

Wednesday will be an all out media frenzy with 7 economic reports on tap. The most important of these will be October's Durable Goods Orders, October's Personal Income and Outlays, November's University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment, and October's New Home Sales.

Let's not forget about the massive amount of new treasury notes to be auctioned this week. There will be a record $44 Billion of 2-Year Notes on Monday, $42 Billion of 5-Yearson Tuesday and $32 Billion of 7-Years on Wednesday.

Although the stock markets will be open on Friday, the markets will close early and light volume will be expected due to many traders who will take an extended 4-day retreat to celebrate the  Thanksgiving holiday.

Home loan shoppers and retirement funds will continue their battle for investment dollars from abroad and here in the US. As-is the par for the course, good economic news will favor the stock market and take money away from mortgage bonds which will result in higher mortgage rates. Conversely, bad economic news will drive investors into the safety of bonds which will help home buyers with lower mortgage rates.

Want to see what other economic reports might impact home buyers in the coming week? Stop by and check out the Financial Market Update Provided to You Exclusively by The Barath Group.

This Is The Week Ahead for November 22nd.

Friday is the most celebrated day of the week. There is so much love and affection towards this day that people often give reverence in the form of Thank God It's Friday.

Even folks on micro-blogging sites such as Twitter have proclaimed the day as Follow Friday with hash tags of #ff and/or #followfriday.

There is no surprise that so much fan fare is given to celebrate the end of something as opposed to the beginning. This does mirror the sentiment that all real estate professionals anticipate and cheer when it comes to a successful purchase transaction.

In regards to the most celebrated Friday, there is none more important than Black Friday as this is the day that many retailers will finally cross the threshold of operating in the red and generating a profit. This year will be even more significant for retailers as the economy has created larger operating losses than normal.

For many consumers, Black Friday also starts the official holiday shopping season with unbelievable deals that come only once a year.

In the spirit of sharing, I wanted to share an online resource that will make planning for the all day marathon of savings a little easier. Not only will you find in-store coupons, but you will also have access to a plethora of online discounts as well. Check out the savings at Black Friday Ads for Black Friday 2009 and Black Friday Deals.

Let's all do our Patriotic duty. Save the Economy, Shop on Black Friday.

As a Certified Mortgage Planner in Northwest Indiana, I have had numerous calls over the past several months in regards to property tax bills. The main reason for the calls are due to a reassessment process that has created delays since 2005.

Our normal cycle for property tax bills in the state of Indiana is for the 1st installment to be due in May and the 2nd installment to be due in November. Both installments are exactly half of the bill.

Our state property taxes are a little unusual in regards to the fact that they are always paid in arrears. For example, the 2007 property taxes owed were not paid until the calendar year 2008.

This year there was even a longer delay due to new state legislation that had been passed and new calculations on reassessed townships. Instead of our normal split bills, residents of Porter County Indiana began to receive our one and only property tax bill for the entire year earlier this month. I personally received my property tax bill this past Tuesday.

There was good news and bad news. The good news is that many like myself will see their property tax bills go down due to property tax caps that went effective this year. The bad news is that the entire amount owed is due by Friday, December 4th.

Happy Holidays! Both Santa and The Scrooge Showed Up In My Tax Bill.

In case you didn't hear, Virtual Real Estate BarCamp will be held online on Tuesday, November 17th. The original goal was to get 1,000 registered attendees and at the time of this blog post, there are more than 1,500 registered. For all those of you who have not had the chance to attend an RE BarCamp in person, now is the time to get in on the buzz.

Not sure what the buzz is all about?

As described by Todd Carpenter, the Social Media Director of the National Association of REALTORS®:

"The most interesting thing about a BarCamp is that it is user/attendant created: the program is developed by the attendees at the event, using big whiteboards upon which a schedule is hastily put together, that can be rewritten or overwritten by attendees to optimize the days' events.  The goal of BarCamp is to reach out to new people who will increase the common intelligence about new technologies, and to create opportunities for cross-fertilization between people and new ideas."

As an attendee of the events in Chicago and Indianapolis, I have had the good fortune to experience the phenomena that has become known as RE BarCamp. This led me to introduce this craze to my local association of RELATORS® here in Northwest Indiana.

Through a collective synergy with the Greater Northwest Indiana Association of REALTORS® (GNIAR), Benchmark Mortgageis proud to sponsor our local In-Office live event to coincide with the Virtual RE BarCamp webinars. Furthermore, I personally will be hosting the event with our very own Nichole Odijk, GNIAR Director of Communications. If you're on Facebook, visit our event page for details.

Game On REALTORS® - Virtual RE BarCamp Has Arrived.

Veterans Day has come and past and now everyone is looking towards the holiday shopping season as a leading indicator on the health of the economy.

The first report of the week will be October's Retail Sales due to be released early Monday morning. This is an extremely important report as it tells the story of consumer spending, which makes up two-thirds of the US economy.

On Tuesday, the key reports shift away from the consumer and to the health of producers and manufactures. The first report will be October's Producer Price Index (PPI) and gives a sneek peek into inflationary pressure at the producer level. The second report will be October's Industrial Production as it will provide the strength in the manufacturing sector.

Wednesday will be a significant day of economic reports that will include October's Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures inflationary pressure on the consumer and really tells the story of consumer buying power. Also to be reported that day will be October's Building Permits, October's Housing Starts and Crude Inventories. Anticipate a lot of media coverage on the housing recovery as focus will be on Housing Starts.

Thursday will be especially important to bond traders as the Treasury Department will announce the dollar volume of 2-year, 5-year and 7-year Notes to be auctioned the following week.

Home loan shoppers and retirement funds will continue their battle for investment dollars from abroad and here in the US. As-is the par for the course, good economic news will favor the stock market and take money away from mortgage bonds which will result in higher mortgage rates. Conversely, bad economic news will drive investors into the safety of bonds which will help home buyers with lower mortgage rates.

Want to see what other economic reports might impact home buyers in the coming week? Stop by and check out the Financial Market Update Provided to You Exclusively by The Barath Group.

This Is The Week Ahead for November 15th.

Today is Veterans Day. We want to thank every soldier as our freedom is a direct result of men and women that fight for our country. Without them we would not have freedom. We definitely would not be facilitating home loans and most certainly would not have the life style we all enjoy.

Benchmark Mortgage: The Barath Group takes this day very serious and truly want to thank each of you that have served our country and pray for the safety of those that are serving our country today.

May God Bless OUR Military, OUR Troops and OUR Country.

This week is light on the economic reports but another record amount of treasury auctions will definitely keep the holiday-shortened week exciting.

This week will include $40 billion in 3-years, $25 billion in 10-years and $16 billion in 30-years. It will be extremely important to keep an eye on how the treasury auctions are received especially by foreign investors on the longer term maturities as it will impact mortgage rates.

With Veterans Day being celebrated on Wednesday, much of the reaction in mortgage bonds and to home loan shoppers will be impacted by headlines of the stock market and recent passage of legislation from Congress.

Be advised that trading volume during holiday-shortened weeks generally are low which means greater volatility for stocks, bonds and mortgage rates.

Home loan shoppers and retirement funds will continue their battle for investment dollars from abroad and here in the US. As-is the par for the course, good economic news will favor the stock market and take money away from mortgage bonds which will result in higher mortgage rates. Conversely, bad economic news will drive investors into the safety of bonds which will help home buyers with lower mortgage rates.

Want to see what other economic reports might impact home buyers in the coming week? Stop by and check out the Financial Market Update Provided to You Exclusively by The Barath Group.

This Is The Week Ahead for November 8th.

It's that time again for the annual Duneland YMCA Womanless Beauty Pageant! You heard that right, the Womanless Beauty Pageant! Although there will be plenty of laughs to go around, this is a serious fundraiser to raise the necessary funds to support the YMCA Strong Kids Campaign.

With a population a little more than 10,000 people, this event is one of the biggest fundraisers for our community YMCA. It also happens to be one of the most theatrical fundraisers that includes local business men competing in evening gowns and swim wear for the titles of Miss-ter Congeniality and Miss-ter YMCA.

Every year this event seems to grow bigger and more lavish. Besides the competition, there is a silent auction that is part of the gala to raise funds. The unique part of the auction is that the men who participate in the contest are responsible for gathering the charity auction items.

Last year, the event raised nearly $27,000 for the YMCA. It truly is amazing what can be achieved when humility is left at the door. Come join us on Saturday, November 6th, for the Duneland Family YMCA Womanless Beauty Pageant...You Won't Regret It!