The Housing Bubble Blog

The Kansas City Star reports from Missouri. "Real estate agent Cindy Tomasic was taken aback by her first foreclosure listing in tony Loch Lloyd. Then she got her second Loch Lloyd listing. And surprise turned to revelation about what is happening to the values of homes in some of the Kansas City...

What do you see in your local housing market this weekend? Flippers? "Alan Barberino wanted a fast sale on a house he was selling, but it wasn't flipping fast enough. Barberino had set the price at 11 Hillside St. in Meriden at $189,000 and got no takers. After a series of reductions, Barberino...

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The Santa Cruz Sentinel reports from California. "This year, 380 notices of default have been posted for Santa Cruz County property owners behind on their mortgage payments. That's double the number at this time in 2007 and more than was issued in all of 2005. Already, 130 homes have been sold at...

The Daily Business Review reports from Florida. "Another major West Palm Beach project is facing foreclosure. The developer of the Sail Club at Clear Lake, who has abandoned plans for the 10-acre residential project, was hit with a foreclosure lawsuit late last week seeking more than $19 million....

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It's Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. "Many banks are revoking home equity lines of credit because mortgage balances are exceeding the actual value of homes. Brad Dodson of Palm Bay is one. Bank of America sent him a letter and told him he no longer had access to the $60,000 credit line...

The Contra Costa Times reports from California. "For some, foreclosed homes may be the embodiment of broken dreams, but for others they can be a sign of hope. Rande and Tracy Ross, a married couple from Stockton, came on the tour to look at possible investment properties, mainly to rent out. 'It...

Some housing bubble news from Washington and the Wall Street Journal. "Cities and counties with some of the worst fallout from the nation's housing slump also are seeing a sharp upswing in vacant homes, a trend economists say might set up further declines in home prices. The national homeowner...

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The North County Times reports from California. "From Valley Center to Del Mar, buyers can be picky. Most cities in North County carry hundreds of home listings for sale while barely a dozen sell each month. In Carlsbad's 92008 ZIP code, it would take about 18 months to sell all the listed houses....

A report from the Alaska Journal of Commerce. "Following in the footsteps of the Seattle housing market, Alaska may soon have its very own mixed-use residential/retail structure located in the heart of Downtown Anchorage. The proposed 100,000-square-foot, 16-story Crystal Plaza development will...

The Sun Sentinel reports from Florida. "For perhaps the first time in its history, Broward County lost population — 13,154 more people left than arrived during the past year, according to U.S. census estimates released today. In the past two years, 55,808 more residents left the county than moved...

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The Recordnet reports from California. "Home-sales auctions have popped in the Central Valley since last summer, but the latest twist is an online auction for new homes with a bidding process similar to that used by eBay. In its first California online auction, the company will be auctioning off 61...

The Denver Post reports from Colorado. "More than 300 people gathered in a conference room at Invesco Field on Tuesday evening in the metro area's largest foreclosure forum to date. The metro area recorded 26,500 foreclosures last year, said Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, who described his own...

The Toledo Blade reports from Ohio. "For the past four months, the Sylvania Township residents Paul and Nannette Dillon have been separated by 135 miles and a sluggish real estate market where unsold houses continue to pile up. She and the children live on Jamesford Drive in the family's $240,000...

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The Daily Bulletin reports from California. "A total of 119 homes and condominiums were up for auction on Sunday, and all but a handful were scooped off the market at prices far below what they would have fetched just a year ago. The firm that hosted the auction, looked to unload homes from all...

Some housing bubble news from Wall Street and Washington. Bloomberg, "Housing starts in the U.S. dropped in February and building permits fell to the lowest level in more than 16 years. Builders broke ground on homes at an annual rate of 1.065 million, the Commerce Department said today. WCI...