Market Realities

Hampton Roads Market Realities (edit/delete)

With 2011 Real Estate Market unknown, we have to look at the results of 2010 to get a sense of our direction and in the current conditions to know where we are headed.

In a great Rose & Womble meeting today, we learned that the New Homes division was up over 4% in units last year and there is only 3.5 months inventory at present.  In addition, the New Homes division saw:

                          

 11% Increase in sales of home in $350,000-$400,000 range

 31% Increase in sales of homes in $400,000-$450,000 range

As Van Rose, President New Homes, these results are a great indication that the market is turning a corner as buyers are feeling the improvements in the market and are confident about moving forward to purchase that new home they have wanted.

With the pent up demand for home purchases caused by the uncertainty and anxiety of the  past three years, there are people the need and will buy homes in 2011.  Buyers have begun to peak their heads out with the growing confidence and the new homes data shows it.

Both New Homes and Resale will benefit in 2011 from:

•     Low New Home Inventory
•     Good Inventory of Homes Priced to Sell(Values are at 2004/2005 levels)
•     Low, low interest rates
•     Improved Buyer Confidence

A recent survey cited by Van, noted 90% of people said it was a great time to buy real estate.   In addition, Van showed a chart noting that a home purchased in 2001 was still valued higher in 2011($50,000 on average) than it would have been if growth rate was 4% over the 10 year period.  Thus, numerous home owners have amply equity in his/her home to act on his/her interest to buy a new home.

In addition, this home owner and renters looking to buy their 1st home can realize that though home values have softened in the past three years, real estate remains an excellent long term investment.      

             

So if you are one of the millions that have wanted to know the right time to buy...YOU FOUND IT!  

 

Up-to-Date Mortgage Info!!!

Keeping you updated on the market! For the week of  January 31, 2011 MARKET RECAP We hope we see marked improvement in the home-builder sentiment index on its next release, because the news on new home sales in December was better than just about anyone expected, jumping 18 percent to an annual unit rate of 329,000. What's more, supply came down and prices jumped. The former fell to 6.9 months, versus 8.4 months in November, and the latter jumped 12 percent to a median $241,500. We did say “marked” and not “phenomenal.” As encouraging as the news on new-home sales was, it wasn't perfect. The fall off in purchase applications over the past few weeks points to a fall off in new-home sales for January. In addition, much of the improvement was concentrated in the West, not evenly distributed throughout the regions. Then again, it rarely is. Real estate is, after all, local. Overall, though, we remain encouraged. This and the previous week's existing-home sales report is good news for housing. Now it's a matter of seeing if the winning streak can be strengthened and extended. Some in the financial media speculated that the buying rush was tied to December's jump in mortgage rates, which encouraged home shoppers to hop off the fence and act. We tend to agree with the speculators. We've been saying over the past half-year that rising rates would be more stimulative than dissuasive. Expecting lower prices and then getting them over an extended period lulled people into an unwarranted sense of certainty and nonchalance. The rate hikes over the past two months have shocked the market back to reality and motivated many people to act. Another shock could be forthcoming for price-deflation proponents. The S&P/Case-Shiller home price index showed a year-over-year price decline in November, with a 0.4 percent decline for the composite 10 index and an adjusted 1.6 percent decline for the composite 20 index. David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at S&P, warned that "A double-dip could be confirmed before Spring.” Blitzer defined a double-dip as both the 10- and 20-city composite indexes setting new post-peak lows. We are not so sure in light of December's data on median home prices. There is also the issue of money supply, which has increased dramatically over the past two years and is set to continue increasing this year. The Federal Reserve is confident it can manage any spike in inflation, but we remain circumspect. Inflation often works like pouring a new bottle of ketchup: You keep smacking the bottom of the bottle repeatedly and nothing comes out. You smack it again and find you have ketchup (and price increases) all over the place. The prospect of sudden inflation is a primary reason we continually warn borrowers and buyers not to procrastinate. Mortgage rates continue to hold steady, and to us, that's an opportunity to act. However, the 30-year fixed-rate loan continues to parallel movement in the 10-year Treasury note, and the 10-year Treasury yield is itching to move higher. Economic Indicator Release Date and Time Consensus Estimate Analysis Personal Income & Outlays (December) Mon., Jan. 31, 8:30 am, et Income: 0.4% (Increase) Outlays: 0.5% (Increase) Important. Spending habits reflect improving consumer confidence. Construction Spending (December) Tues., Feb. 1, 10:00 am, et 0.2% (Decrease) Important. Spending levels are stabilizing after months of decline. Mortgage Applications Wed., Feb. 2, 7:00 am, et None Important. Concerns over lower home prices and stagnating rates are slowing activity. Productivity (4th Quarter 2010) Thurs., Feb. 3, 8:30 am, et 0.2% (Increase) Important. Moderating productivity suggests increased business hiring. Factory Orders (December) Thurs., Feb. 3, 10:00 am, et 1.1% (Increase) Important. The long-run trend reflects persistent strength in manufacturing. Employment Situation (January) Fri. Feb. 4, 8:30 am, et Unemployment Rate: 9.4% Payrolls: 150,000 (Increase) Very Important. Unexpected strength in hiring could prompt the Federal Reserve to re-examine its low-interest-rate policies. Money on the Move Correlations between asset classes are always on the move and always changing: when one asset class gets hot, the others tend to cool. In case no one has noticed, the stock market is hot these days. In fact, the two leading stock-market benchmarks – the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 Index – are posting multi-year highs. We broach this point to note that money invariably moves to the hot asset class, and in today's market, that's stocks. This money also invariable moves at the expense of the former hot asset class, and the former hot asset class is Treasury securities. As money leaves an asset class, the required expected return on that class rises to reflect its diminishing popularity and to entice money to return. As we noted above, mortgage rates are tethered to Treasury rates. We also noted that inflation would get rates moving higher, but so will money moving away from Treasury securities into other asset classes. We think this notion of asset rotation is one more arrow in the quiver of those of us expecting higher mortgage rates in 2011. If you wish to unsubscribe, click on the link below and send the email. If this message was forwarded to you, please reply to the sender. Click Here To Unsubscribe EQUAL HOUSING LENDER This Newsletter is for informational purposes only. The information contained herein may not be applicable to every situation or jurisdiction and we urge you to consult your professional advisor prior to acting on information contained herein. The content, accuracy and opinions expressed herein are not verified or endorsed by the sponsor hereof.

Buy a Foreclosure Today

Buy A Foreclosure Today (edit/delete)

Foreclosures

                                Foreclosures

                                                                          Foreclosures

Seems like every news channel can only talk about foreclosures as if they are the bane of civilization.

It is very unfortunate that individuals had a personal dilemma that caused their house to be foreclosed upon. There are truly some horrible stories of job loss, separation/divorces and investments gone bad that underly the bevy of foreclosures on the market.

Yet to see the silver lining of the foreclosures present in the market does not make the buyer a "vulture".  Rather the foreclosures are a once-in-a-life opportunity for buyers to enter the housing market at the bottom with future equity growth all but guaranteed.  Foreclosures = Cash!!!!

                

Foreclosures can be bought at Auction at the Court House steps(in most states) or after the Auction when the Foreclosure is listed by the bank with a Realtor because the bank buy house back as no "reasonable" offer was submitted. Both Foreclosure purchases have risks but the Court House Auction is riskier due to Redemption clauses in almost any and all Foreclosures.

Yet neither is to be feared.

 BUT THE BUYER MUST BE  PREPARED, KNOWLEDGEABLE AND REALISTIC  WHEN BUYING FORECLOSURES. 

 Are you prepared??    Knowledgeable of the process??      Have Realistic expectations???