The Housing Bubble Blog

A report from Mortgage News Daily. "The Wall Street Journal reports that the Republican tax plan could trigger a roughly $14 billion accounting loss at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, leading to the first taxpayer-funded infusion since they became profitable firms in 2012. 'At issue is an accounting...

A report from Toronto Storeys on Canada. "Premier Kathleen Wynne says she had serious concerns about the government sticking its nose in the red-hot, runaway housing market in Toronto, despite being urged to weigh in. Wynne said it became clear to her that market behaviour was 'irrational.' 'It...

A report from the Waco Herald Tribune in Texas. "On a recent Thursday afternoon at Magnolia Market at the Silos, tourists line up for $3.50 'shiplap cupcakes.' In the shadow of the rusted silos, children toss beanbags on a village green of artificial turf. Parents slouch in striped beanbag chairs....

A weekend topic starting with the Japan News. "The global economic recovery continues to gather steam. Why has strong global economic growth continued since last year even as political turmoil has emerged in the United States and Europe? Despite stormy seas since last year, with Britain leaving the...

A report from Real Estate Weekly on New York. "A glut of rentals has New York’s landlords offering deep discounts this holiday season. And although landlords’ use of incentives skyrocketed, they could not hold down the Manhattan vacancy rate where inventory rose to the highest level in over eights...

It's Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. "It was what one expert called 'the mother of all booms.' Just over a decade ago, Arizona’s construction industry was leading the country in residential and commercial building. People were waiting up to a year for a house, even as builders were...

A report from Mansion Global. "The real estate market will be among the sectors most impacted by the $1.5 trillion tax bill passed in the U.S. Wednesday. Many real estate experts have been up in arms about the changes, with the National Association of Realtors (NAR) initially warning that it could...

A report from Reuters. "Janet Yellen used her last press conference as Fed Chair to muse that a flat yield curve should not be interpreted as a sign that the economy is heading for a slowdown. In other words, 'This time it’s different.' Seasoned Fed-watchers will be forgiven for feeling a sense of...

A report from CBS San Francisco in California. "Bay Area residents are used to hearing about how red hot the housing market is, but home sales on the Peninsula are taking that trend to a wild new level. Consider a home on Colorado Avenue in Palo Alto. It listed for $2.9 million, but sold for $3.9...

A report from Mansion Global on Canada. "Vancouver’s luxury markets may further cool in 2018 if the city’s proposed measures to quell its housing affordability crisis take effect. Among the measures in the new strategy are: Increasing the tax rate on luxury homes. Imposing a speculation and...

A weekend topic starting with the Squamish Chief in Canada. "It is hard to imagine where we go from here, but we have to try. Squamish reached a real estate milestone last month with the benchmark price of a detached family home topping $1 million for the first time, clocking in at $1,013,000,...

A report from CBS San Francisco in California. "The housing crunch in pricey Silicon Valley is not only hitting those who are barely scraping by. Even millionaires are not making money fast enough to keep up with the surging real estate market. In some cities, even having two or three million won’t...

It's Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. "Buying a house in the East Bay is not for the faint of heart. The sellers set a listing price, but everyone understands that it is more of an opening bid than an actual sales price. So, a guessing game ensues, and buyers understand they may need to...

A report from National Public Radio. "Ten years ago this month, you may not have noticed the cracking and crumbling under you. Federal Reserve policymakers were offering reasons for calm, saying they expected strong consumer spending. But the Fed was wrong: In December 2007, an economic earthquake...

A report from the Denver Post in Colorado. "Metro Denver’s real estate boom may still have room to run, but developers behind several high-profile projects in the region said they are turning cautious. 'People can’t make the deals pencil out,' said Matt Joblon, CEO of BMC Investments. More are...

A report from CNBC. "Bitcoin is in the 'mania' phase, with some people even borrowing money to get in on the action, securities regulator Joseph Borg told CNBC. 'We've seen mortgages being taken out to buy bitcoin. … People do credit cards, equity lines,' said Borg, president of the North American...

A report from CBC News in Canada. "Before oil prices tanked in 2014, Fort McMurray was a notoriously hot housing market. Realtor Lance Bussieres could barely keep a house on the market for a couple of hours before getting several offers. 'It was very busy," Bussieres, co-owner of ReMax Fort...

A weekend topic starting with the Dallas Observer in Texas. "To our regret or good fortune time only will tell, but Dallas is a great laboratory for viewing the forces roiling around American cities. We’ve got thunder overhead, rumblings in the basement and maybe a great day ahead. Nationally, the...

A weekend topic starting with the OB Rag in California. "Editor’s Note: The following is an interview with an fictitious Airbnb host. I’m sitting down with an Airbnb host to discuss the dollars and sense of short term vacation rentals (STVRs). These have been a hotly debated issue in San Diego, and...

It's Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. "Back in August, the seven-bed, seven-bath Russian Hill triplex at 949 Lombard, once used to film the first San Francisco season of MTV’s The Real World, popped up for sale, asking a princely but contextually appropriate $6.99 million. Four months...