St Louis Foreclosure Activity Increases In May

st-louis-realtor-dennis-norman-real-estate-foreclosuresThis morning, RealtyTrac released their U.S. Foreclosure Market Report for May 2012 which shows that foreclosure filings (default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions) we’re reported on 1,872 properties in St. Louis during the month, a 4.41 percent increase from the previous month and an increase of 16.71 percent from May 2011. During the month, 1 out of every 667 homes in St. Louis had a foreclosure filing. Continue reading “St Louis Foreclosure Activity Increases In May

One in four St Louis Metro home sales are foreclosures;   One in three in the City of St Louis

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This morning RealtyTrac® released its U.S. Foreclosure Sales Report™ for the first quarter of 2012, which shows that sales of homes that were in some stage of foreclosure or bank owned accounted for 24 percent of all St. Louis metro area home sales during the first quarter — up from 17 percent of all St Louis home sales in the fourth quarter and the same as the first quarter of 2011. The report also shows that, during the quarter, over 10 percent (10.36) of St Louis metro home sales were short-sales, an increase from 5.85 percent the previous quarter and an increase from 7.46 percent from the first quarter of 2011. Continue reading “One in four St Louis Metro home sales are foreclosures;   One in three in the City of St Louis

Existing home sales and prices increase in April;  Housing recovery is underway

dennis-norman-st-louis-realtor-existing-home-salesToday’s existing home sales report from the National Association of REALTORS® shows existing home sales in April were at at a seasonally adjusted-annual rate of 4.62 million units which is a increase of 3.4 percent from the month before and an increase of 10.0 percent from a year ago. The actual number of homes sold in April was 400,000 which is an increase of 11.1 percent from the month before and an increase of 6.7 percent from a year ago when there were 375,000 homes sold. Continue reading “Existing home sales and prices increase in April;  Housing recovery is underway

Fannie mae sets new 30 day deadline to respond to short sales

dennis-norman-st-louis-realtor-By now almost everyone has probably heard a story about (or experienced themselves) the laborious, time-consuming and mind numbing process of trying to buy (or sell) a home on a short sale or, in other words, for less than is owed on the home with the lenders blessing. Unfortunately the lenders blessing, in many cases, has taken many weeks or even many months to get causing many buyers and sellers to give up along the way. Now though, thanks to a recent rule change by Fannie Mae, this process will be improved greatly and happen within 30 days in most instances. Continue reading “Fannie mae sets new 30 day deadline to respond to short sales

Vacation home sales hit four-year high

  • st-louis-realtor-dennis-norman-vacation-homesAccording to a report just released by Homeaway, sales of vacation homes in 2011 reached a four-year high, fueled by the lowest median sales price in eight years, cheap mortgage rates, and the desire for a family retreat. The research found 33 percent of vacation home buyers purchased a vacation property last year primarily because of low real estate prices, while another 30 percent cited the desire for a family retreat. According to data from a National Association of REALTORS survey, the median sales prices for vacation properties at $121,300, putting ownership within greater reach of more consumers. Continue reading “Vacation home sales hit four-year high

Home sales slip slightly in February but up almost 9 percent from a year ago; home prices increase slightly

dennis-norman-st-louis-realtor-existing-home-salesToday’s existing home sales report from the National Association of REALTORS® shows existing home sales in February were at at a seasonally adjusted-annual rate of 4.59 million units which is a decrease of 0.8 percent from the month before and an increase of 8.8 percent from a year ago. The actual number of homes sold in February was 286,000 which is an increase of 10.0 percent from the month before and an increase of 13.0 percent from a year ago when there were 253,000 homes sold. Continue reading “Home sales slip slightly in February but up almost 9 percent from a year ago; home prices increase slightly

Report shows For Every Two Homes Available for Sale, There Is One in the "Shadow"

st-louis-realtor-dennis-norman-shadow-inventory-corelogicA report released this morning by CoreLogic shows that the current residential “shadow” inventory as of January 2012 was 1.6 million units, equivalent to a 6-months’ supply, and approximately the same level last reported in October 2011. The shadow inventory is down from a year ago though, when it was at 1.8 million units, or an 8-months’ supply. Currently, the flow of new seriously delinquent (90 days or more) loans into the shadow inventory has been offset by the roughly equal flow of distressed sales (short and real estate owned), according to the report.

“Almost half of the shadow inventory is not yet in the foreclosure process,” said Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic. “Shadow inventory also remains concentrated in states impacted by sharp price declines and states with long foreclosure timelines.” Continue reading “Report shows For Every Two Homes Available for Sale, There Is One in the "Shadow"

St Louis rents on the rise while home prices on the decline

st-louis-realtor-dennis-norman-hot-rental-market-A report released today by Zillow shows that median rents rose 6.1 percent in St Louis to $1,085 from January 2011 to January 2012 while, during the same period, home prices fell 6.9 percent to $120,300. According to the report, over two-thirds (69.2 percent) of the metro areas covered saw year-over-year gains in rents but only 7.3 percent of the metros saw home values rise during the same period. Continue reading “St Louis rents on the rise while home prices on the decline

Bank of America, J.P. MOrgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citigroup and Ally Financial reach $25 Billion Agreement with Fed & State Government over Foreclosure Abuses

The Justice Department, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and 49 state attorneys general announced today the filing of their landmark $25 billion agreement with the nation’s five largest mortgage servicers to address mortgage loan servicing and foreclosure abuses. Continue reading “Bank of America, J.P. MOrgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citigroup and Ally Financial reach $25 Billion Agreement with Fed & State Government over Foreclosure Abuses

Home prices decline in January; sixth consecutive month of decline

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A report released this morning by CoreLogic, one of the nations leading providers of property information shows that home prices in the U.S. fell in January 3.1 percent from the year before and declined by 1.0 percent from the month before marking the sixth consecutive monthly decline in home prices.

Excluding distressed sales, year-over-year prices declined by 0.9 percent in January 2012 compared to January 2011 and month-over-month home prices increased 0.7 percent in January. Distressed sales include short sales and real estate owned (REO) transactions. Continue reading “Home prices decline in January; sixth consecutive month of decline

St Louis Foreclosures in 2011 Remain Flat; Sold for about half of non-distressed sales

st-louis-foreclosures-realtor-dennis-normanSt. Louis foreclosure sales in 2011 numbered 7.894, about the same as the year before, according to a report released this morning from RealtyTrac.  The 2011 St Louis Foreclosure sales were down almost 20 percent from 2009 and accounted for about 17 percent of all home sales in 2011.  The average St Louis Foreclosure sale price in 2011 was $86,167, a discount of over 49 percent of a non-distressed home sale.  Continue reading “St Louis Foreclosures in 2011 Remain Flat; Sold for about half of non-distressed sales

Existing home sales and prices increase in January

dennis-norman-st-louis-realtor-existing-home-salesToday’s existing home sales report from the National Association of REALTORS® shows existing home sales in January were at at a seasonally adjusted-annual rate of 4.57 million units which is an increase of 4.3 percent from the month before and an increase of 0.7 percent from a year ago. The actual number of homes sold in January was 257,000 which is 26.4 percent less than the month before and 4.0 percent more than a year ago when there were 246,000 homes sold. Continue reading “Existing home sales and prices increase in January

One in five home sales is a foreclosure and only two-thirds the cost of a non-foreclosure home

foreclosures-home-sales-realtor-dennis-normanForeclosure Price 34 Percent Below Average Price of Non-Foreclosures

RealtyTrac, today released its third-quarter 2011 U.S. Foreclosure Sales Report, which shows that sales of homes that were in some stage of foreclosure or bank owned accounted for 20 percent of all U.S. residential sales in the third quarter of 2011, down from 22 percent of all sales in the second quarter and down from 30 percent of all sales in the third quarter of 2010.
To find foreclosures in your area click here. Continue reading “One in five home sales is a foreclosure and only two-thirds the cost of a non-foreclosure home

Where is the St Louis Real Estate Market Headed in 2012?

dennis-norman-st-louis-real-estate-market-forecast-2012Shortly after finishing my video recap of the 2011 St Louis Real Estate Market I began analyzing our market data and giving thought to the 2012 St. Louis Real Estate market.  The end result?  The MORE St Louis Market 2012 Forecast.   For a link to my 15 minute video as well as a downloadable report, please submit your name and email address here and you will receive it immediately. Continue reading “Where is the St Louis Real Estate Market Headed in 2012?

Housing market not out of the woods yet

Dennis Norman St Louis RealtorMark Fleming, Ph.D., Chief Economist for CoreLogic, in a presentation yesterday, said the housing market is not out of the woods yet as the potential of a double-dip in our economy increases and as 30 to 40 percent of economists feel there is a chance of another recession. The economy’s “stall speed” was another issue Fleming said was a concern, describing it as similar to the stall speed of an airplane; that speed at which is still fast enough for the plane to be flying, but just on the edge of stalling and no longer able to maintain flight. Fleming said, for the economy, a 1 percent growth rate is historically the “stall” point and that is right about where we are presently. Continue reading “Housing market not out of the woods yet

REALTORS offer suggestions to the Fed on how to deal with the REO problem

Dennis Norman, St Louis REALTORNational Association of REALTORS® (NAR) President, Ron Phipps, wrote a letter to Shaun Donovan, Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Timothy Geithner, Secretary of the Treasury Department and Edward DeMarco, Acting Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency with suggestions on how to improve the Real Estate Owned (REO) asset disposition programs for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA. NAR, like many other housing related associations and organizations, submitted letters in response to the government’s request for information on how to deal with the REO problem. Continue reading “REALTORS offer suggestions to the Fed on how to deal with the REO problem

Converting REO’s to rentals could help housing recovery according to Fed Official

St. Louis REALTOR, Dennis NormanFederal Reserve Governor Elizabeth A. Duke, while speaking at the Federal Reserve Board Policy Forum last week, discussed the effect on the housing market that properties acquired by banks and lenders through foreclosure (REO’s) and suggested that if some of this inventory was converted to rental property by the lenders, this may have a positive effect on the housing market. Continue reading “Converting REO’s to rentals could help housing recovery according to Fed Official

Home sales activity in July down from month before; still better than last year

Dennis Norman

The National Association of REALTORS Pending Home Sales Index for July shows, after two consecutive months of increases, a decrease of 1.3 percent in the index from the month before (seasonally adjusted), and a 14.4 percent increase from a year ago (last month’s index was up 19.8 percent from the year before). Continue reading “Home sales activity in July down from month before; still better than last year

St Louis Foreclosure Sales Increase in 2nd Quarter; account for 1 of every 4 home sales

St. Louis REALTOR, Dennis NormanThis morning, RealtyTrac released it’s Foreclosure Sales Report for the St. Louis metro area for the 2nd quarter of 2011 which showed there were 2,138 REO’s (banked owned) and Pre-Foreclosure (short sales and other sales of property with loans in default) during the quarter which is a 4.86 percent increase from the prior quarter and a decrease of 6.64 percent from a year ago. Continue reading “St Louis Foreclosure Sales Increase in 2nd Quarter; account for 1 of every 4 home sales

Home prices increased in June; third consecutive month of increases

Dennis Norman St Louis

A report released by CoreLogic shows U.S. home prices increased in June 2011 by 0.7 percent from the month before, marking the third consecutive month-over-month increase. However, U.S. home prices in June 2011 decreased 6.8 percent from the year before. If we take the distressed sales (foreclosures, REO’s and short-sales) then year-over-year home prices declined by 1.1 percent in June 2011 from June 2010. Continue reading “Home prices increased in June; third consecutive month of increases

New home permits and starts increase in May; New home shortage coming?

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The U.S. Census Bureau and US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued their report on New Residential Construction for June 2011 showing a very slight increase in single-family home building permits from the month before (0.2 percent), and a 9.4 percent increase in new home starts compared to the month before. Continue reading “New home permits and starts increase in May; New home shortage coming?

New home construction increases in May; outpacing new home sales by 60 percent

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The U.S. Census Bureau and US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued their report on New Residential Construction for May 2011 showing a 2.5 percent increase in single-family home building permits from the month before, and a 3.7 percent increase in new home starts compared to the month before. Continue reading “New home construction increases in May; outpacing new home sales by 60 percent

Will jobs fix the housing market or will housing fix the job market?

There is a lot of talk in the media today about the poor housing market and how an increase in employment would help bring the housing market back. However, the question is, will a recovery in the job market bring the housing market back, or will a recovery in the housing market bring the job market back? Continue reading “Will jobs fix the housing market or will housing fix the job market?

St. Louis Home Prices Declined 9.70 Percent in April 2011 Compared to Year Before

Dennis Norman St Louis

A report released this morning by CoreLogic shows home prices in the St. Louis declined in April 2011 by 9.70 percent from the year before which is a larger decline than the month before when St Louis home prices were down 9.44 percent from the year before.  If we take “distressed sales” (foreclosures, REO’s and short-sales) out then home prices declined by 3.53 percent in April from the year before. Continue reading “St. Louis Home Prices Declined 9.70 Percent in April 2011 Compared to Year Before

Report Shows Little Improvement in Underwater Homeowners

Dennis Norman St Louis

Negative equity is the dominant factor driving the real estate market according to CoreLogic in it’s “U.S. Housing and Market Trends” report that was released today. According to the report, as of the 4th quarter of 2010, over 11 million (23 percent) of U.S. homeowners with a mortgage were in a negative equity position, meaning they owe more on their mortgages than the current value of their home. Continue reading “Report Shows Little Improvement in Underwater Homeowners

New Home Construction Declines in April; No Recovery in Site for Builders

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The U.S. Census Bureau and US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued their report on New Residential Construction for April 2011 showing a 1.8 percent decrease in single-family home building permits from the month before, and a 5.1 percent decrease in new home starts compared to the month before. Continue reading “New Home Construction Declines in April; No Recovery in Site for Builders

New home sales and prices increase in March

Today, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau released new home sales data for March 2011 showing an increase of 11.1 percent from the month before, and a decrease of 21.9 percent from a year ago.

The seasonally-adjusted new home sales rate for March was 300,000 homes. The supply of new homes on the market decreased from an adjusted 8.2 month supply the month before to a 7.3 month supply in March. The median new home price increased for the month to $213,800, a 2.9 percent increase from a revised median price of $207,700 the month before and a decrease of 4.9 percent from a year ago. Continue reading “New home sales and prices increase in March

New Home Construction Activity Increases in March

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The U.S. Census Bureau and US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued their report on New Residential Construction for March 2011 showing a 5.7 percent increase in single-family home building permits from the month before, and a 7.7 percent increase in new home starts compared to the month before. This comes on the heels of new home construction sinking to a 25 year low last month. Continue reading “New Home Construction Activity Increases in March

Foreclosure Activity Decreases 15 Percent during First Quarter of 2011

The 800 pound gorilla in the room has finally lost some weight!

RealtyTrac released their foreclosure report for the first quarter of 2011 which shows foreclosure filings were reported on 681,153 U.S. properties during the quarter, a 15 percent decrease from the previous quarter and a 27 percent decrease from the first quarter of 2010.  St. Louis did not see as big of a decrease but still the numbers are looking better!  St. Louis had 5,023 properties with foreclosure filings during the first quarter 2011 which works out to one in every 248 St. Louis properties and represents a decrease of 17.82 percent from the previous quarter and a 11.80 decrease from the 1st quarter of 2010.

Continue reading “Foreclosure Activity Decreases 15 Percent during First Quarter of 2011

Low prices and low mortgage rates spurred 2010 vacation home purchases

Dennis Norman St LouisMore than half a million vacation homes were purchased last year, fueled by low real estate prices, attractive mortgage rates and the potential for price appreciation according to research done by the National Association of REALTORS for HomeAway. Continue reading “Low prices and low mortgage rates spurred 2010 vacation home purchases