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ZipRealty: For-sale inventory shrinks

By Inman News, Tuesday, September 22, 2009.

Inventories of homes for sale declined or were essentially flat from July to August in all 25 markets tracked by real estate brokerage ZipRealty, with 19 markets seeing double-digit declines from a year ago.

Inventories shrank by an average of 2.7 percent from July to August, with declines in 21 markets and little or no change in four others, ZipRealty said, according to multiple listing service data.

From July to August, for-sale inventory in the San Francisco Bay Area declined by 7.6 percent, followed by Orlando ...  more...

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What's the holdup? Homes that won't sell

By Inman News, Tuesday, September 22, 2009.

Inman News wants to hear about the types of properties that are selling slowest -- or not at all -- in your market area.

Our question to you: Which types of properties are the most difficult to sell in your market area and why?

What makes these homes so undesirable? Why are buyers bypassing them? When did you notice this trend develop and what are your future expectations for this trend?

Send your comment (one or two paragraphs) by e-mail to: liz.frantz@inman.com or leave your comment at the end of this post.  more...

Prices creep up in most Census divisions

By Inman News, Tuesday, September 22, 2009.

An index tracking sales of homes purchased with loans owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac showed home prices rising for the third consecutive month from June to July, by a seasonally adjusted 0.3 percent, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said.

The FHFA's monthly index -- which can understate price swings in either direction because it excludes loans too big or too risky for Fannie and Freddie -- showed U.S. home prices down 4.2 percent from a year ago and 10.5 percent from an April 2007 peak.  more...

$8,000 tax credit set to expire

By Bernice Ross, Tuesday, September 22, 2009.

Time's a ticking on the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit. Don't wait -- this opportunity will pass you by if you don't close on your new property before Dec. 1, 2009.

Part 1 of this series discussed the advantages of buying now rather than waiting. One of the best reasons for buying now is the $8,000 tax credit. Here are some of the requirements to take advantage of this great program.

1. Who qualifies as a first-time homebuyer?
For the purposes of the $8,000 credit, it is a buyer who has not owned a principal residence for a three-year period prior to purchase.  more...

The short-sale action guide

By Tara-Nicholle Nelson, Tuesday, September 22, 2009.
Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.mhprofessional.com/product.php?search_crawl=true&isbn=0071635580" target=blank>McGraw-Hill</a>.

If you're an active participant in today's real estate market, you know that the recent drop in housing values -- right after a couple of years of unprecedented borrowing against home equity -- has forced us all to get much more familiar with short sales than ever before.

(A short sale, for your information, is a transaction in which the homeowner is selling the home for less than he or she owes on it. This requires that the lender or lenders involved agree to forgive some portion of the outstanding mortgage debt in order to consummate the transaction.)  more...

Industry groups share appraisal concerns

By Inman News, Tuesday, September 22, 2009.

Realtors, lenders and home builders say are united in their desire for "clear, concise regulatory guidance" on the use of distressed properites as comparable sales that will allow appraisers to develop "realistic valuations."

The National Association of Home Builders, the National Association of Realtors, and the Mortgage Bankers Association issued a statement following an "appraisal summit" with federal regulators calling for clarification of rules governing appraisals on loans slated for purchase or guarantee by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  more...

Gaming the real estate market Premium Content

By Erik Pisor, Tuesday, September 22, 2009.
Flickr photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/harshlight/3236314938/in/set-72157613077650904/">HarshLight</a>.

Negotiating purchase prices, selling assets, and collecting rent isn't just a part of real-world real estate -- these are key features of Hasbro's Monopoly CityStreets, a new online version of the classic Monopoly board game that incorporates Google Maps as its game board.

"It's definitely a way to learn about real estate cash flow and investment," said Nick Roman, a Realtor with Melbourne, Fla.-based Tropical Realty of Suntree.

On Sept. 9, the day the game launched, about 1.7 million people worldwide attempted to log on and play ...  more...

Fixed defects: 'water under the bridge'?

By Barry Stone, Tuesday, September 22, 2009.

DEAR BARRY: My home was inspected about eight months ago, but the buyer backed out of the deal. Since then, I've paid contractors to repair the defects that were found by the buyer's home inspector. Now the home is back on the market, everything has been fixed, and I don't know if I'm required to disclose the old inspection report to future buyers. What are the rules regarding the disclosure of a past home inspection report? --Lou

DEAR LOU: The rules that govern real estate disclosure vary from state to state, but the basic requirement is to disclose every known condition that could be of concern to a buyer. Most buyers are not concerned about conditions that have been repaired, except to know that the repairs were done correctly and completely.  more...

Role of cash-outs in crisis studied Premium Content

By Inman News, Tuesday, September 22, 2009.

A new study concludes that cash-out refinancings and home equity lines of credit played a larger role in the financial crisis than was previously understood, by greatly expanding and "synchronizing" the pool of borrowers at risk to price declines.  more...

Wanted: 'Credible' appraisals

By Marcie Geffner, Tuesday, September 22, 2009.
Flickr image by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/bramus/3365442997/in/photostream/">Bramus!</a>

It's the hottest topic in real estate today: The Home Valuation Code of Conduct, or HVCC, is so hot that it's not just inflammatory. It's on fire.

The HVCC is a new set of appraisal-related practices that lenders must follow with respect to loans they want to sell to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. These new practices are intended to reduce the incidence of appraisal fraud and prevent inappropriate pressure being placed on appraisers to inflate home valuations in home purchase and loan refinance transactions.  more...