The Housing Bubble Blog

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The Voice of San Diego reports from California. "Home prices in San Diego County logged a 25 percent drop from July 2007 to July 2008, according to the latest Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index. That 25 percent year-over-year drop was the steepest on record. The decline returns home prices in...

The Sublette Examiner reports from Wyoming. "Sublette County has not only avoided the housing-market crash, it has remained protected from global economic instability. Jeff Patterson, 1st Bank president, pointed out there are no troubled banks in Wyoming, 'particularly in our area,'and any savings...

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The Times Union reports from New York. "Condos are a relatively novel housing type in both Catskill and Greene County, meaning the Tower project was an experiment of sorts. The units were rentals at first, but Tower bought the Marina Drive property in 2003, added 14 townhomes to the site, and last...

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The Merced Sun Star reports from California. "Rep. Dennis Cardoza questioned how the federal government decided to divide $3.9 billion in foreclosure aid and asked that it take another look at its math and methods before sending out the checks. Apparently, one reason Merced was left off the list...

WJXT Jacksonville reports from Florida. "In the latest byproduct of the widening global financial crisis, Citigroup Inc. will acquire the banking operations of Wachovia Corp. -- the second largest bank in Florida. As details of its takeover unfolded, Wachovia shares plunged 91 percent to 94 cents....

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The Press Enterprise reports from California. "Foreclosures could continue to depress the Inland economy for years because of mortgages popularized during the housing boom that are starting to haunt homeowners. Already these mortgages, called option ARMS, are showing high default rates. When Sheri...

The Pittsburg Post Gazette reports from Pennsylvania. "Howard Hanna III has never seen a real estate market like this -- and he has been keeping an eye on real estate for the past 40 years. Falling interest rates and generally low unemployment typically prompt home owners to expand their homes or...

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The Rocky Mountain News reports from Colorado. "It looks like the mountain community of Edwards won't be getting a luxury condominium tower with cutting-edge urban design by architect Daniel Libeskind after all. The developer has pulled the plug on the $125 million, 140,000-square-foot tower 15...

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A report from the California UHS. "Home sales increased 56.7 percent in August in California compared with the same period a year ago, while the median price of an existing home fell 40.5 percent, C.A.R. reported. 'Although the month-to-month decline in the median price was the smallest in a year,...

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It's Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. "Gresham and its working-class neighboring cities have caught more than their share of the housing pain. On the north end of Main, real estate broker Darren O'Halloran's sign hangs in front of a vacant lot. O'Halloran bought the plot with a partner...

A report from the Associated Press. "Existing home sales in the Midwest tumbled nearly 18 percent in August from last year, while the median sales price in the region fell 5.6 percent to $168,000, the National Association of Realtors said. The median sales price fell in nine cities in the AP-Re/Max...

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The LA Daily News reports from California. "San Fernando Valley homeowners saw property values plunge 35 percent - a quarter-million dollars on a median-price home. The median price of a previously owned house tumbled from $650,000 in August 2007 to $420,000 last month, said a new report from the...