real estate news: Home Prices Experience Biggest Annual Decline in 21 Years - 02/26/09 01:37 AM
The S&P/Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index plunged 18.2% during the final quarter of 2008, the biggest annual decline in the closely watched index's 21-year history. Separately, for the month of December alone the Case-Shiller 20-City Composite Index fell 18.5% compared with the previous December, also a record decline.
The seven worst performing cities in terms of year-over-year declines continue to be from the Sunbelt, reporting negative returns in excess of 20%. Phoenix was down 34.0%, Las Vegas reported -33.0% and San Francisco fell 31.2%. Denver, Dallas, Cleveland and Boston faired the best in terms of annual declines down 4.0%, 4.3%, … (3 comments)

real estate news: Two-thirds of Americans Support Home Buyer Tax Credit - 02/11/09 01:19 AM
                                         
The Senate yesterday approved an $838 billion economic stimulus bill that includes a $15,000 homebuyer tax credit. In addition, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner unveiled a multitrillion-dollar financial stability plan that includes $50 billion for foreclosure prevention programs.
Officials hope that the $15k tax credit - with no repayment required - will inject some much needed life back into the housing market. The Associated Press reports that the homebuyer tax credit offered by Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-GA., would apply to any home purchased as a main residence and would cost taxpayers $19 billion.
How the tax credit works The … (4 comments)

real estate news: New Housing Radio Show Set to Debut - 02/10/09 12:37 AM
                                       
Call me old-school, but I like to listen to radio talk shows when I'm in my car. Over the last few years, the housing market boom then bust has been a topic that's dominated the airwaves. And for one new radio show, there's still plenty more to talk about.
Real Estate Today, which is backed by the National Association of REALTORS (NAR), will cover the benefits and challenges of homeownership, from expert advice on buying and selling, to remodeling and landscaping, to the state of the current market and home financing issues. The show will air online at RETRadio.com. … (1 comments)

real estate news: Homescape Web Site Changes Name to HomeFinder.com - 01/08/09 02:33 AM
I usually post a blog everyday on ActiveRain, but over the past few weeks I've been a bit busy preparing for some new changes at Homecape, so I apologize for my absence here on the AR. Below is a message from Tim Fagan, President of CV Real Estate (and my boss), about all the new things happening at our Web site.
Good morning!  Today is an exciting day for our team, our customers, our Affiliates and the entire online real estate industry. Homescape has changed its name to HomeFinder.com!   
Over the past 10 years, our Web site has grown into one of the most relied upon real … (2 comments)

real estate news: Foreclosure Activity Down in November - 12/15/08 01:49 AM
                                                     
November was a classic good news bad news month for foreclosure activity. According to RealtyTrac's most recent U.S. Forelosure Market Report, which shows foreclosure filings - default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions - foreclosure activity decreased  7 percent in November from October, but jumped 28 percent from the same time last year. The report also shows one in every 488 U.S. housing units received a foreclosure filing in November.

RealtyTrac officials say there are several indications that this lower activity is simply a temporary lull before another foreclosure storm hits in the coming months.
"When you typically … (3 comments)

real estate news: Pending Home Sales Fall in October - 12/10/08 01:13 AM
Despite a rise in unemployment and falling retail sales, pending home sales remain in a stable range, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). NAR's Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI), a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in October, slipped 0.7 percent to 88.9 from an upwardly revised reading of 89.5 in September, and is 1.0 percent below October 2007 when it was 89.8.
Conditions remain uneven around the country, but some areas that are showing healthy gains in pending home sales from a year ago include several Florida and California markets, Providence, R.I.; Lansing, MI; Oklahoma City and Las … (1 comments)

real estate news: Home Prices Tumble to Record Lows - 11/25/08 02:37 AM
                                         
The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index tumbled a record 16.6 percent during the quarter from the same period a year ago. Prices are at levels not seen since the first quarter of 2004.
The monthly indices also showed record declines. The 20-city index fell by 17.4 percent in September compared with a year ago, the largest drop since its inception in 2000. The 10-city index plunged 18.6 percent, the biggest decline in its 21-year history.
Prices in the 20-city index have plummeted almost 22 percent since peaking in July 2006. The 10-city index has fallen more … (1 comments)

real estate news: Fannie and Freddie Suspend Foreclosures - 11/24/08 01:44 AM
Some troubled homeowners on the verge of losing their property are starting to feel extra thankful this holiday season. Lending giants Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, which were seized by the government in September, announced last Thursday that they will contact an estimated 16,000 borrowers who are facing foreclosure or evictions between November 26, 2008 and Jan. 9, 2009. Those proceedings will be delayed and the homeowners will have a chance to work with mortgage servicers to modify their home loans into affordable payments.
The streamlined modification program is scheduled to launch December 15. Foreclosure attorneys and loan servicers will be … (3 comments)

real estate news: Homescape is a Hit at 2008 NAR Conference - 11/13/08 12:58 AM
While we here at Homescape are optimistic about the future of the real estate market across the country, we also recognize that these are trying times.
And in today's challenging market, Homescape has become more committed than ever to providing our customers and consumers with a comprehensive set of online marketing tools that effectively drive traffic and leads back to the real estate professional and the listings. With over 3 million home listings, Homescape will continue to be a leading online provider of local, comprehensive real estate property listings and rich consumer focused content.
Homescape and HomeGain customer appreciation party at … (0 comments)

real estate news: Homescape Goes Mobile - 11/07/08 02:56 AM
I'm going home,And when I want to go home, I'm going mobile. Well I'm gonna find a home on wheels, see how it feels,Goin' mobile. Keep me moving...
- The Who, "Going Mobile"
Searching for a home on the go is simple with Homescape's new property listings for smartphones.
There's nothing more liberating than going mobile, footloose and fancy-free, with the (virtual) world at your fingertips. For today's home buyers, that means the convenience of punching up real estate listings on their wireless gizmos. That's pretty cool, seeing that you can do that while sitting on the bus or strolling through … (2 comments)

real estate news: The American Dream - 11/04/08 12:41 AM
Today's election day, and I'm feeling extra patriotic - even without sporting my American flag lapel pin. I got out of bed bright and early this morning to cast my votes for the next president of the United States and other candidates running for office in my area. But I'll keep those checkmarks between me and the ballot box. With early voting last week attracting a record number of voters across the country, election officials are expecting even more people to head to the polls today to exercise their civic duty.
                                        
The 2008 presidential election is being considered one … (2 comments)

real estate news: Homescape to Show New Products at NAR - 11/03/08 01:08 AM
                                               
This has been a very exciting year for us here at Homescape. From the new, übercool redesign of our home page to the launch of our home buying guides and green property listings, we've worked hard in 2008 to give you a top-notch real estate Web site.

We'll be showing our goods at this year's National Association of Realtors Conference and Expo, November 7-10 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL. This marks Homescape's third appearance at NAR's largest trade show. Despite the downturn in the housing market, Homescape continues to create new and innovative search … (3 comments)

real estate news: New Plan to Help Troubled Home Loans - 10/31/08 02:14 AM
                                              
Put away the pitchforks and torches, there may be some help on the way for struggling homeowners. The $700 billion bailout of Wall Street and private banks has been under heavy scrutiny from taxpayers, who say the government has done little or nothing for Main Street Americans on the verge of loosing their homes. Officials from the Treasury Department and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) are working on a new proposal that could help some 3 million homeowners behind on their mortgage payments and help keep them in their home, according to a New York Times report published … (1 comments)

real estate news: Back to the Future of the Housing Market - 10/30/08 01:49 AM
In the film, "Back to the Future," Marty McFly meets Doc as planned in the parking lot of Twin Pines Mall. Doc presents a DeLorean DMC-12 which he has modified into a time machine. As Marty videotapes, Doc explains the car travels to a programmed date and time upon reaching 88 miles per hour using plutonium in a nuclear reaction to generate the 1.21 gigawatts of power it requires. Demonstrating how to program the machine, Doc enters in November 5, 1955 as the target date, explaining that it was the day he conceived the idea of the flux capacitor; the device … (8 comments)

real estate news: Home Prices Continue Dropping in August - 10/29/08 01:35 AM
The housing market has been slightly uplifted in recent weeks with positive news from the U.S. Department of Commerce and the National Association of Realtors about increases in new and existing home sales. But don't start celebrating yet. Prices of existing homes in August continue to show broad declines across the country, according to the latest Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices released on Tuesday.

The 20-city housing index dropped a record 16.6 percent from August last year, the largest drop since its inception in 2000. Case-Shiller's 10-city index also plunged 17.7 percent, the biggest drop in its 21-year history. … (1 comments)

real estate news: New Home Sales Up in September - 10/28/08 01:59 AM
                                       
 As median home prices dropped to the lowest level in four years, many economists appeared pleased that the housing market is beginning to chip away at the inventory glut. The U.S. Commerce Department said Monday that sales of new single-family homes rose by 2.7 percent in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 464,000 units.

The new data comes on the heels of a National Association of Realtors (NAR) report released Friday that said existing-home sales also increased in September, as buyers responded to greater affordability. Existing sales - which consist of single-family homes, townhouses, condominiums and … (8 comments)

real estate news: Home Sales Up in September - 10/27/08 02:19 AM
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported on Friday that existing home sales increased last month as buyers responded to improved housing affordability conditions. Existing sales - which consist of single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops - rose 5.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.18 million units in September from a level of 4.91 million in August, and are 1.4 percent higher than the 5.11 million-unit pace in September 2007, according to the report.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said more markets are seeing year-over-year gains. "The sales turnaround which began in California several months ago is … (4 comments)

real estate news: NAR Wants Additional Housing Rescue from Washington - 10/21/08 02:27 AM
                                       
From Wall Street to the nation's automotive giants, everyone wants a piece of Congress's $700 billion bailout pie. And last week, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) called for housing stimulus legislation that would tap the rescue pot. The stimulus legislation NAR is proposing would include eliminating the repayment of the $7,500 first-time home buyer tax credit and expanding it to all home buyers, and making higher mortgage loan limits permanent to benefit buyers in high-cost areas.
In addition, the trade group wants banks to extend credit to Main Street, expediting the process for short sales and banks' real … (3 comments)

real estate news: Housing Starts Plummet in September - 10/20/08 02:28 AM
                                            
Privately owned housing starts fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 817,000 in September, according to the U.S. Commerce Department report on new residential construction. The rate was down 6.3 percent from August's revised reading of 872,000 and 31 percent lower than September 2007. Building permits also sank.
Housing starts have fallen by nearly two-thirds from their peak of 2.3 million in January 2006, and were at the lowest annual pace since January 1991.
New construction of single-family homes - which make up a good chunk of the housing market - were at a rate of 544,000, … (1 comments)

real estate news: Pending Home Sales Rise in August - 10/09/08 01:40 AM
                                           
A glimmer of good news on the housing front! Pending sales of U.S. resale homes increased 8.8 percent in August compared to the same month last year, the National Association of Realtors reported on Tuesday, rising to the highest level since June 2007.
The index offers an indication of future sales, as it measures the volume of signed contracts for sales transactions that have not yet closed. Sales are typically finalized within one or two months of signing, although some deals fall through before the transactions are closed.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said in a press release … (3 comments)