The Housing Bubble Blog

The Boston Globe reports on auctions. "The developer of a new luxury condominium project in Boston's financial district is resorting to a tactic last seen in the real estate bust of the 1990s: It's holding an auction for the 34 remaining, unsold condominiums. 'There's been a stalemate between the...

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The Associated Press has this report on Las Vegas. "The Las Vegas housing market, the nation's ninth largest, will be flat or slightly lower in 2006 because of a rising inventory of homes for sale, Merrill Lynch said Tuesday. 'We do not expect selling conditions to improve until existing home...

Thw Washington Post reports on interest rates. "The U.S. Federal Reserve may need to raise interest rates again to tame inflation and the ECB can afford to hike euro zone rates further now that it has proof of solid economic recovery, the OECD said on Tuesday. The Organization for Economic...

A housing update from the Australian. "The scourge of negative equity has spread to Brisbane as the property downturn continues to slug investors and the lower end of the housing market." "According to Australia's largest mortgage broker, falling property values in parts of Brisbane has led to an...

CNN has this report from a Federal regulator. "New evidence of a housing market slowdown emerged Tuesday - growth in the price of a single family home was just 1.17 percent in the second quarter, a decline of one percentage point from the prior quarter." "The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise...

MarketWatch reports on Bakersfield, California. "Just 12 months ago, this sun-baked Southern California city was one of the hottest real-estate markets in the country. Those days now are dust in Bakersfield's gusty winds. 'Yeah, we miss those times,' Darrell Muhammed, a local agent, said of last...

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What's your Labor Day prediction for the housing market? Make it local, regional, national or global. Here are some from the July, 1 2006 predictions thread: "I predict that by the end of the year, the Seattle area will finally start showing signs of the bubble seen in the rest of the country. I’m...

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The Arizona Republic reports from Phoenix. "Scottsdale Coldwell Banke Branch Manager Earlene Nelson invited me to hear some of her agents' firsthand housing market experiences. Valley home buyers are sitting on the sidelines waiting to see when the market is going to level off. Most open houses are...

The LA Times reports on the condo market. "Buyers seeking condos have scads to choose from, but if it's bargains they want, they should probably hang tight a bit longer. It's unclear how long these high prices will last, but appreciation rates already have slowed dramatically." "If history is a...

A couple of readers suggested noting the significant 'milestones' we've seen with this housing bubble. "I’ve got a Labor Day weekend topic suggestion. It’s good time to look back at how far we’ve come and what the important milestones have been." "I’ll suggest a format: 1. What marked the top of...

The Orlando Sentinel has this editorial from Florida. "The Florida housing market is spiraling down. How hard we land remains a matter of speculation, but the momentum is away from soft. Those who bought a downtown condo with the intention of flipping will get burned unless they have deep enough...

What do you see in your housing market this weekend? Builder incentives? From Arizona. "As the real estate market declines, so does the number of jobs related to the industry. Thus far layoffs among homebuilders have been minimal, and real estate agents say their numbers are still strong. 'Here’s...

The Union Leader reports from New Hampshire. "State revenues were off by 6 percent in August, pulled down by a plummeting real estate transfer tax and sagging rooms and meals returns. The biggest disappointment to budget writers is the real estate transfer tax." "Department of Administrative...

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The Record Net reports from California. "Home prices in the Central Valley have started sagging year-to-year, just as they have in most San Joaquin County cities. Sales were down nearly 43 percent year-to-year as well." "Vince Malta, a San Francisco real estate broker who is president of (CAR),...

Readers suggested a topic on weakness in different price ranges. "I think the lower end houses will remain more stable in the upcoming downturn. That’s what I have observed in prior downturns, (except if its in a area were major job loses take place ). The upper middle takes a major bath in...

Some housing reports from the Nevada Appeal. "There aren't many people looking to buy homes during this typically slow season in late summer/early fall, but those who do are spending about 6 percent less than a month before, according to city assessor records. Residential sales are also being...