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December 16, 2011
Almost done with Christmas shopping? I hope so, because it’s time for Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system. Here’s what you and your REALTOR need to know before touring, making an offer, or preparing a listing in the Las Vegas Valley this weekend. Be sure to tune in and see me talk about the figures live on Getting REAL (Estate) in Vegas on the Vegas Video Network live today and every Friday at 2:00 PM. Today we talk about the NAR’s upcoming home sales revisions and Occupy Our Homes.
Summary: According to our MLS system, we’ve broken under 12,000 listings! There are only 11851 available properties. A year ago we had 16417. Remember that this low level might be partly seasonal, as non-institutional sellers (”normal people”) don’t really want their holidays interrupted by showings! Banks also want to avoid the bad publicity of foreclosing and evicting someone right before the holidays (how Grinch-like!), so the number of bank owned properties may rise after the first. One interesting thing is that list prices are very close to where they were last year — a great sign considering how far they’ve fallen. There are also signs that short sales are being processed more quickly, even if banks aren’t exactly following Nevada’s 90 day rule.
The News: There are some signs that we are recovering from the foreclosure mess nationwide, but that doesn’t mean all will be sunshine and roses. Meanwhile, it looks like a foreclosure fraud settlement that lets banks get away with fraud is likely to be made by Christmas. At least one Senator thinks that’s a bad idea.
Mortgage rates have hit yet another all time low, now at 3.94%. That’s just crazy.
The NAR will be revising it’s existing home sales figures for the last 5 years. I’ll be talking about how they managed to overcount by roughly 13% on today’s show.
December 9, 2011
I’m back and ready to go! Welcome to Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system. It’s what you and your REALTOR need to know before touring, making an offer, or preparing a listing in the Las Vegas Valley this weekend. Be sure to tune in and see me talk about the figures live on Getting REAL (Estate) in Vegas on the Vegas Video Network live today and every Friday at 2:00 PM. Today we talk about Vegas’s new foreclosure ordinance, stupid Realtor tricks that could prevent people from buying your home, and a very special What Were They Thinking.
Summary: We now only have 12120 available properties in our MLS. Expect more classic and short sale listings after the first of the year, as people finish the holidays and face reality about the need to sell their homes. Surprisingly, the number of properties under contract is also down — a sign that these listings are closing rather than falling out of contract and becoming available again.
The News: California and Nevada are continuing to fight for a proper investigation of foreclosure fraud — despite the mysterious death of at least one witness — putting a nationwide foreclosure fraud settlement at risk (good, put a stake through the chest of that settlement, because it sucks!).
There’s been a lot of speculation this week about whether the nationwide market has bottomed or not. The opinions? Probably, but we aren’t out of the woods yet and it may well take half a decade to actually recover.
This week, the Las Vegas City Council approved a strict foreclosure ordinance. The purpose is to force banks to take care of foreclosed properties and not let them fall into disrepair. I will be talking about this proposal on the show today, so don’t forget to tune in.
And finally, I am an agent at a Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services branch. Earlier this week, PRERS was sold by Prudential Financial Services to Brookfield Residential Services. Brookfield will continue to license the Prudential name. This should not effect my business in any meaningful way.
December 6, 2011
Whew! It’s nuts out there. Thanks for taking time away from the stores to check out the Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system. It’s what you and your REALTOR need to know before touring, making an offer, or preparing a listing in the Las Vegas Valley this weekend. Normally I talk about the figures live on Getting REAL (Estate) in Vegas on the Vegas Video Network every Friday at 2:00 PM, but we will be taking this week and next week off.
Summary: Available units continues to drop, now at 12582. Expect a spike after the first of the year, since many sellers don’t want to have their holidays disrupted by potential buyers. It’s very encouraging that availables are down since the number of available foreclosures and classic listings are both up! Obviously, this means we have fewer short sales this week. There are also fewer short sales under contract. Closings were very strong, considering the short work week.
The News: One of the big news items you won’t hear too much about is that PMI has filed for bankruptcy. PMI is the largest provider of private mortgage insurance — the stuff that is supposed to pay the bank if a a borrower defaults and the lender has to foreclose. Speaking of foreclosures, it looks like there might be a 49 state deal that excludes California. That is, unless New York, Delaware, and Nevada decide they have enough evidence to really tackle the fraud that banks did.
If you love charts and figures, go check out this great post over at The Mess That Greenspan Made!
Mortgage rates are down yet again, this time to an absolutely amazing 3.98%. I will be shocked if rates are this low a year from now. Maybe that’s why existing home sales are up.
November 22, 2011
It’s time for Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system. Here’s the real deal, information you and your REALTOR need to know before touring, making an offer, or preparing a listing in the Las Vegas Valley this weekend. Join me as I talk about the figures live on Getting REAL (Estate) in Vegas on the Vegas Video Network today and every Friday at 2:00 PM! Be sure to join us!
Summary: The number of available properties dropped again, this time to 12645. That’s a change from 16474 last year. There were major declines in the number of distressed properties for sale over the last year, and a more modest change in the number of non-distressed listings. While there’s not much seasonality for foreclosures, “smart money” short sellers and traditional sellers have their homes on the market now, through the holidays. They know that only serious buyers are out before year end! There is a small divergence in median prices of available vs. contingent/pending single family homes, probably due to bargain hunters.
The News: You read that item I posted earlier about 2 people being indicted on 606 counts of mortgage fraud right here in Nevada, right? I can’t believe that’s not all over the Review-Journal’s online edition!
The HARP changes announced a few weeks ago now have guidelines to go with them. Underwater and need to refinance? This might help you. Speaking of refinancing, Freddie Mac has made the startling discovery that most people who are refinancing — at record low interest rates, I might add — are choosing fixed rate mortgages! I guess they are surprised that people are using common sense.
Remember that just 6 weeks ago, new lower FHA limits came out? Now Congress has passed a bill allowing those limits to be raised again. There’s no word yet on whether there will really be any change here in Clark County. I stand by what I said on air: we have a lot of houses available for less than $287,500, and if you can really afford a $300,000 home you can surely afford to put down more than 3.5%.
And just one more local item: 10 of the strangest shops in Vegas. Ready for Christmas shopping season yet?
November 5, 2011
Thanks for reading Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system. Here’s the actual no-spin data you and your REALTOR need to know before touring, making an offer, or preparing a listing in the Las Vegas Valley this weekend. Join me as I talk about the figures live on Getting REAL (Estate) in Vegas on the Vegas Video Network today and every Friday at 2:00 PM! Today by viewer request we’ll be talking about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Be sure to join us!
Summary: The number of available units did drop again to 13017, changed from 13433 a month ago. I’m pleased that the number of properties available for less than $100,000 is continuing to drop. The number of properties under contract has dropped under 13,000. Normally I would say this is a good sign, but the number of contingent and pending short sales is actually up slightly from last month. Part of this is simply that we have 7% fewer available short sales than we had at the beginning of October.
The News: Freddie Mac sold over 25,000 foreclosed properties last quarter, but they foreclosed on over 24,000 new ones. Experts say it will take poor Freddie a decade to work through the inventory at the current rate.
Earlier this week I told you about the possibility of getting an independent review of your foreclosure if you were foreclosed on in 2009 or 2010. It turns out I’m not the only one who is a bit critical of the proposal. I’m also not the only person who is very critical about the rumors concerning what’s in the latest version of the foreclosure fraud settlement: the banks get a slap on the wrist and we all pay the price. Let your Congressmen know what you think: Senate, House. Just a month ago, we were talking about how the settlement might be dead.
Mortgage rates did fall again this week to a nice even 4.00% average. I’m sure that has something to do with why housing shows “more evidence of a bottom” — and that’s from someone who has been pretty bearish on housing over the years!
And one bit of local real estate news. Apartment complexes are experiencing high occupancy rates, but average rent is down this quarter to $752 per month. Analysts expect that continued high occupancy will result in higher rents. However, it’s worth remembering that thanks to investors getting incredible deals, renters now have much greater choice in rental housing.
October 28, 2011
Happy Nevada Day! Let’s celebrate the founding of our great state with some Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system. It’s what you and your REALTOR need to know before touring, making an offer, or preparing a listing in the Las Vegas Valley this weekend. Join me as I talk about the figures live on Getting REAL (Estate) in Vegas on the Vegas Video Network today and every Friday at 2:00 PM! Today I’ll be talking about the upcoming HUD auction where you can buy a home for $100 down, and changes in the HARP refinancing program. Be sure to join us!
Summary: State and county offices are closed for Nevada Day, which means no closed properties today. However it’s still month end, so escrow companies were under a lot of pressure to cram 5 days of work into 4, and Monday promises to be a busy day for them as well. Even with the short work week, they managed to close well over 900 transactions. The number of available properties did drop slightly to 13170. One pleasant surprise is a drop in the number of condos available for less than $100,000. The number of homes under contract is down, but that just reflects the strong number of closings we are seeing. By the way, the number of short sales under contract is also down and the number of closed short sales is up; that means banks are actually slogging through the backlog of short sales. Will they really get every Nevada file out the door within 90 days? Don’t count on it, but they’re getting closer.
The News: The experts see multiple signs of a real estate rebound, even though we have yet to really clear the foreclosure crisis and the aftermath of underwater homes. This is despite the fact that home sales were down in September — but up from last year.
On the foreclosure front, MERS faces yet another lawsuit, this one in Delaware where the AG (who happens to be the Vice President’s son) says they “engaged and continues to engage in a range of deceptive trade practices that sow confusion among consumers, investors and other stakeholders in the mortgage finance system, damage the integrity of Delaware’s land records, and lead to unlawful foreclosure practices.” Since it can be hard to keep up with all the foreclosure fraud and financial crisis figures, here’s a handy cheat sheet. Sorry for the accidental pun.
October 21, 2011
Time flies, and it’s already time for Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system. It’s what you and your REALTOR need to know before touring, making an offer, or preparing a listing in the Las Vegas Valley this weekend. Join me as I talk about the figures live on Getting REAL (Estate) in Vegas on the Vegas Video Network today and every Friday at 2:00 PM! Today we have great stuff for both buyers and sellers, so be sure to join us!
Summary: There wasn’t a big change in the number of available units, now at 13218. A year ago we had 15951, a drop of over 20%. The number of properties under contract remains strong, as do current sales. Normally the last week of the month is a very busy time for closing properties — partly because banks want to get it off the books before the end of the month. However, next week the County Recorder’s office and most title/escrow offices will be closed on Friday the 28th in observance of Nevada Day. Be patient with your escrow officers if you have a property under contract.
The News: This week we had data on existing home sales for September. While sales were down from August, they were up from a year ago. And remember, Vegas is on track for a record year of sales. Unfortunately, it looks like prices are also slightly down.
Another MERS lawsuit has been filed, this time in Ohio. However, MERS isn’t the only defendant: the suit names pretty much every big bank in the nation, alleging they “systematically broke chains of land title throughout Ohio counties’ public land records by creating gaps due to missing mortgage assignments they failed to record, or by recording patently false or misleading mortgage assignments.” It will be interesting to see what happens next, because banks are pushing for immunity from such suits as part of the foreclosure fraud settlement.
Some experts say real estate won’t recover until something is done about the so-called “shadow inventory.” Here’s one of the best and most sensible things I have read recently about shadow inventory. The short version? It’s not nearly as bad as some people want you to think.
There is some evidence that banks are approving more short sales — a critical step towards recovery in markets with a lot of “underwater” homes such as Vegas.
October 18, 2011
Thank goodness it’s Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system. It’s what you and your REALTOR need to know before touring, making an offer, or preparing a listing in the Las Vegas Valley this weekend. Join me as I talk about the figures live on Getting REAL (Estate) in Vegas on the Vegas Video Network today and every Friday at 2:00 PM! Today we will focus primarily on sellers. Thinking of putting property on the market? Be sure to tune in!
Summary: The number of available properties slides once more, landing at 13254 this week. However, the number of properties under contract to be sold is up, hopefully to eventually move on to “sold” status. No surprise, the number of sold units has dropped as we get into the middle of the month. Prices for available units — particularly bank owned properties — are staying at slightly higher levels than we saw over the summer.
The News: While foreclosure filings may be up from last month (unless they aren’t), they are down sharply from last year. Foreclosures are also taking longer. On the upside, this may mean that banks are being more careful about their paperwork, avoiding mistakes and illegal foreclosures (probably not). On the downside, it will take longer for them to work through the backlog. As long as banks dump thousands of foreclosures into our real estate markets, it will be difficult to have a real estate recovery.
Speaking of foreclosures, the latest research would indicate that the foreclosure crisis was not I repeat not caused by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, or the Community Reinvestment Act. Those who point to the CRA ignore the fact that the law was in effect for decades before there was ever a problem. In fact, most criticism I have seen of CRA is little more than dressed up racism with a hint of class-ism.
Having a hard time keeping up with all the Federal foreclosure programs that were supposed to help you out? Here’s a handy rundown of what they all are and whatever became of them. As a bonus, there’s a section about the ideas that sounded good but never happened. I would have liked to have seen links to the programs that are still running. Thankfully, Google and Bing can hook you up.
We continue to have strong sales here in Vegas, propelled by — you guessed it — investors with cash in hand. Some of these investors plan to rent out the properties, and others plan to “fix and flip.” However, Vegas is not the only housing market where available inventory is going down.
October 7, 2011
Alright! Time for Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system. Here’s the truth about Vegas Real Estate, information you and your REALTOR need to know before touring, making an offer, or preparing a listing this weekend. Normally, I talk about the figures live on Getting REAL (Estate) in Vegas on the Vegas Video Network every Friday at 2:00 PM. Today there will regrettably be no show, so join us next week!
Summary: Available units is down again, this time to 13433. That’s a change from 14202 on September 2. The number of short sales under contract is continuing to trend downwards. Even more good news, the list price on available bank owned property is continuing to trend upwards! The first and last weeks of the month are always a busy time for closing transactions, and this week is no exception. The median sales and listing prices of sold properties is still moving in a narrow range from about $105,000-$110,000 — right now near the top of that range — but there was a spike in the number of sold short sales this week. Anything that gets short sales out of the system is a Good Thing in my book.
The News: I’m not the only person to notice inaccurate listings on most of the real estate websites! A study by Trulia says that 1 of every 10 online listings outside the MLS has major errors either in price, availability, or both! Yet another reason to give your criteria to a really good buyers agent and stop wasting hours on search websites.
The Census Bureau says that home ownership is at the lowest levels since the Great Depression — surely a factor influencing prices. It wasn’t that long ago that we were talking about record high levels of home ownership.
Bank of America is making a major shift away from buying mortgages from other banks, a move that will effect the entire mortgage market. But you wouldn’t know that to see mortgage rates, which are now under 4%. Speaking of companies that buy mortgages, Fannie Mae is under fire for not only filing falsified foreclosure filings, but ignored all evidence that they were doing so. Sorting through this mess is of course one factor in the deepening foreclosure backlog. But the good news is that seriously delinquent mortgages are at a 3 year low.
September 30, 2011
Thanks for stopping by to read the Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system. This is the real deal: the no-nonsense information you and your REALTOR should know before touring, making an offer, or preparing a listing this weekend. You can see me tell you about the figures live on Getting REAL (Estate) in Vegas on the Vegas Video Network today and every Friday at 2:00 PM. Today we get deeper into the topic of new construction, and you’ll hear the story of The Air Conditioner Lottery.
Summary: The number of available properties continues to slide, now at 13541. There is still just a little evidence that home prices are starting to tick upwards, in part due to slightly higher prices on foreclosed homes — up 7% since July! The good news keeps coming: the number of short sales awaiting lender approval has dropped under 8000. It will still be a big task to clear the system of these short sales, considering that more come on the market every day and an estimated 60-70% of Nevada homeowners are “underwater” on their mortgages.
The News: Remember that tomorrow, new FHA loan limits go into effect. Locally, the new limit will be $287,500. Many consider this an issue because large downpayments are an obstacle for some buyers, but since 11668 of our 13541 available properties are priced under $287,500 I don’t consider this to be an issue locally. Rates on conventional mortgages have hit yet another all time low, now at 4.01% on a 30 year fixed-rate mortgage.
Nationwide, the number of pending sales is at a 4 month low, partly due to Hurricane Irene. Locally, we are still moving at a brisk clip: sales are at a 5 year high and we have plenty of contingent and pending contracts waiting to close. Meanwhile, the amount of so-called “shadow inventory” is down.
Programs designed to prevent foreclosure are not reaching nearly as many people as hoped, and to add insult to injury 1 in 5 people who get a mortgage modification re-default! And even worse, the current spike in Bank of America foreclosure activity (for more, look towards the end of this story) may be a side effect of their recent $8,500,000,000 settlement with investors.
Oh, and for those of you who just can’t get enough What Were They Thinking, enjoy these home “improvement” nightmares!
