The Housing Bubble Blog

The Cantonrep reports from Ohio. "Nancy Niarchos and her husband bought (a) Jackson Township condo for $137,900 in 2003. They had it painted. They put on a new roof, and they installed a new kitchen counter and a backsplash. Then they realized the condo was too small. So the Niarchos bought a...

Some housing bubble news from Wall Street and Washington. "KPMG LLP sued former auditing client Fannie Mae, the biggest source of money for US home loans, for 'fraudulent deception' that prevented KPMG from uncovering $6.3 billion in overstated earnings. Fannie Mae from 1998 until 2004 withheld and...

The Palm Beach Post reports from Florida. "How about an early peek at March sales of existing homes, which come out this week? You'll have an insider's position for a day, the official Realtors report comes out Tuesday. An early report gives us a heads-up on what Wednesday's headlines are probably...

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The Press Enterprise reports from California. "Inland home foreclosures this year have increased more than ninefold over the same period a year ago, driven by flat appreciation and sagging home sales. Ana Ibarra and her husband, Guillermo Macias, adore their five-bedroom house in a new tract of...

The Bend Bulletin reports from Oregon. "A Portland developer proposed in January a nearly 300-unit, four-story hotel-condominium project. for Bend-based Brooks Resources Corp., which is developing the project. Brooks has seen a slowdown in Prineville's market in the last year, said Randy Jones,...

Readers suggested a topic on bail-out details. "Perhaps we can talk a bit about the practicalities of a bailout. I work for a big company involved in the MBS business. How can current subprime loans be 'restructured' in any way when they are owned by MBS investors who purchased these securities...

The Times Herald Record reports from New York. "When it comes to housing, the hottest town in Orange County last year was 'none of the above.' The highest median price last year was boasted by Woodbury ($419,250), but that was down 4.5 percent from 2005, and the number of sales in Woodbury plunged...

What do you see in your housing market this weekend? Incentives? "Sellers are getting more creative, aggressive, and sometimes desperate with incentives to lure buyers to a massive supply of unsold homes in a bleak housing market." "Buy a house in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., listed for $925,000 and...

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The Financial Times reports on California. "Far away from the sun-kissed beaches and palm trees that make up southern California's idyllic coastline, trouble is brewing in the Inland Empire. The area is facing a looming crisis, with an increasing number of homeowners delinquent, or failing to make...

In Business Las Vegas reports from Nevada. "The price of new homes has tumbled nearly 10 percent this year, the inventory of existing homes has reached an all-time high and bank repossessions accounted for a greater percentage of existing home sales in Las Vegas, according to the March housing...

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It's Friday desk clearing time. "Jeffrey Taylor and his wife bought their dream home in Purcellville for $538,000 last August. Now they have to sell it and neither one can afford the mortgage alone. The most they could get for it was $430,000. After paying all the real estate commissions and taxes,...

The Voice of San Diego reports from California. "After a dozen people spoke to the devastating effects of foreclosures in the region in Thursday's meeting of the City-County Reinvestment Task Force, one San Diego man told his own story. Andy Sobel said he's facing foreclosure on his east San Diego...

Some housing bubble news from Wall Street and Washington. The Dallas News, "Slower new-home sales in key Texas markets are adding to homebuilder D.R. Horton Inc.'s woes. 'We are struggling with softer markets in San Antonio and softer markets in Dallas-Fort Worth,' Horton CEO Donald Tomnitz said....

The Boston Globe reports from Massachusetts. "The number of Boston residents who lost their homes in foreclosure was four times greater last year than in 2005, according to a new report, and the rate is accelerating this year. This year the city is on pace to exceed 2006 numbers. Of the Boston...

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

The LA Daily News reports from California. "The home sales market in the Santa Clarita Valley is returning to normal, real estate experts said. 'It's not going to be like it was the last two or three years, where we were seeing huge numbers of sales and huge price increases,' said Larry Gasinski,...