The Housing Bubble Blog

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The Sacramento Bee reports from California. "Robert Kleinhenz, deputy chief economist for the California Association of Realtors, gave an hour-long overview of the economy, the mortgage market and the housing outlook to the Sacramento Association of Realtors. His basic tone: big-time caution about...

Some housing bubble news from Wall Street and Washington. MarketWatch, "In a sign that the U.S. housing market may have further to weaken, an index of sales contracts on previously owned homes fell 1.0% in March from the prior month, the National Association of Realtors reported Wednesday. The...

The Columbus Dispatch reports from Ohio. "With so many would-be buyers waiting, M/I Homes wrapped up an anxious year during which it sold a large portion of its land holdings and worked hard at cutting expenses. M/I Homes' CEO Robert H. Schottenstein attributes some of his company's problems...

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The North County Times reports from California. "Residents in a neighborhood on the southeast border of the city said last week a financial agreement between a wireless company and several homeowners could drive down area property values. Not only will an 'unsightly' cell phone tower depress home...

Some housing bubble news from Wall Street and Washington. Bloomberg, "D.R. Horton Inc. reported a record loss as the deepening housing slump forced it to write down $834.1 million of land and inventory. The fiscal second-quarter net loss at the largest U.S. homebuilder was $1.31 billion, almost...

The Herald Tribune reports from Florida. "Martin Caparros was late to the party with his Vintage Grand condominium conversion project, but his sales team still managed to sell 238 units for a total of $43.4 million from January 2006 to October 2007. It turns out, however, that part of the Miami...

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Business Edge reports on Montana. "When Eric Watson first saw the unique chalets at Slopeside on Big Mountain in Whitefish, Montana, he thought they would appeal to companies that want to host retreats for employees and clients. 'It's Aspen living at Montana proportions,' says Eric Watson, managing...

Some housing bubble news from Wall Street and Washington. Dow Jones, "When it released its preliminary second-quarter operating results early Monday, Hovnanian Enterprises Inc., one of the nation's biggest builders, detailed more pain to come. The much-watched cancellation rate improved slightly -...

The Tribune Review reports from Pennsylvania. "During the first three months of 2008, 1,187 houses were foreclosed in the five-county Pittsburgh region, the second highest total for a three-month period on record, according to RealStats. Another report found that during the 23 months between...

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The Ventura County Star reports from California. "Dark days haunted Mike and Kristin Bertrand after they learned they were losing their Newbury Park home. Mike Bertrand was skeptical of solicitations from real estate agents, brokers and scam artists. 'It's not like somebody gives you a handbook and...

I suggested a topic on the moving target that is a lowball offer. "Conventional wisdom claims that lowball offers don’t work. Homebuyers are warned not to 'insult' sellers, who are counseled not to counter offers from 'disrespectful' buyers. But conventional wisdom doesn’t always hold true. With a...

What do you see in your housing market this weekend? Accidental landlords? "Susannah Moss's trendy one-bedroom Adams Morgan condo, in a converted warehouse, has become a potential money drain. Moss contracted to buy the unit in early 2005. She is trying to sell the condo but has been hampered by...

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The Ventura County Star reports from California. "Ventura County consumer bankruptcy filings jumped 122 percent last year as lenders toughened refinancing requirements, area bankruptcy attorneys say. The days of being able to 'refinance away' problems, as has been a tradition in California, are...

Highlands Today reports from Florida. "Now that the construction industry in Highlands County is grinding slower and slower, Don Maddox spends a lot more time in his truck. 'I'm on the computer, or looking at jobs out of town,' said Maddox, the owner of Central Florida Glass & Mirror. To keep his...

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