The Housing Bubble Blog

Some housing bubble news from Wall Street and Washington. "Retailer Lowe's Cos. reported a lower-than-expected first-quarter profit on Monday as the slower U.S. housing market pressured sales and cut its full-year earnings forecast. In a statement, Lowe's said a difficult U.S. housing market, tough...

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports from Pennsylvania. "With the spring real estate market more than halfway to its traditional end-of-June close, many agents are saying that they - and the buyers and sellers they deal with - have finally adjusted to post-housing-boom conditions." "In the suburbs,...

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The Daily News reports from California. "Now that some of the dire fears about adjustable-rate mortgages and sub- prime loans are proving true, lenders and nonprofit groups are rushing to come up with ways to slow down the defaults and foreclosures. But there's also a growing call from mortgage...

Newsday reports from New York. "The Oceanside splanch had been listed for eight months. There were about 25 showings and three offers. Then the buyers the owners were looking for showed up. 'We were curious why the house was on the market for so long,' says Danae Schneider. 'We didn't think...

The News Press reports from Florida. "Area banks are racking up millions of dollars in bad debt, thanks to the softening real estate market in Southwest Florida. Five Southwest Florida banks had a combined $57.5 million in outstanding construction and land loans that weren't being paid, according...

What do you see in your housing market this weekend? Rising foreclosures? Motivated sellers? "Fort Wayne and other historically stable housing markets in the Midwest probably will not experience wild swings in housing prices, though home prices are trending downward, according to experts." "David...

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A report from the Arizona Republic. "One of the challenges Mary Hennecke is facing in selling her house in Gilbert is competing against incentives being offered by homebuilders. But, those incentives are also a major reason why she plans to buy a new house in Gilbert after her current one sells....

Readers suggested a topic on real estate spin. "What’s your favorite property description or Realtor shill?" Another, "'Handyman Special.' Usually used in conjunction with a house with MAJOR problems, being sold at a paltry discount to comps." And, "'Pride of ownership.' Pride goeth before...

The Herald Tribune reports from Florida. "The Sky Sotheby's/J.P. King real estate auction, offering one of the largest luxury home portfolios ever presented in a single swoop, drew an overflow crowd of 300 people. What the event showed even those in Southwest Florida's all-important real estate...

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It's Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. "After rising rapidly for several years, house prices have stalled in North Jersey, according to the National Association of Realtors. One buyer who has benefited from the recent turn of the real estate cycle is Burt Guralnik, who started looking for...

The Sacramento Bee reports from California. "Here's the forecast from two more experts on the housing market: The slump is likely to continue through the rest of this year and most of 2008. April sales numbers show little reason to doubt them. 'I think we're going to be dealing with this all the...

Some housing bubble news from Wall Street and Washington. "Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said rising defaults in the subprime mortgage market and tightening loan standards will bring a 'continued period of weakness' to housing, making it difficult to forecast growth in the next...

The Tallahassee Democrat reports from Florida. "Home sellers should heed the advice of their real-estate agents, especially in this current competitive environment, according to longtime Realtor Jan Soto. 'Sellers need to do everything they can to make their homes, properties look good,' Soto said....

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And send in your housing bubble photos to: hbbphotos@gmail.com

The San Francisco Chronicle reports from California. "The median price for an existing single-family dwelling in the Bay Area hit a record $720,000 in April, up 6.6 percent from last April, according to DataQuick. That happened even though the number of existing homes sold in April fell 19.9...

A report from the Colorodoan. "As subprime lenders close their doors, foreclosure rates increase and home prices dip, the American dream has turned rapidly frightening. 'The end result is that fewer people will get into homes,' said Cynthia Torp, founder of The Angel Investment Network in Fort...