The Housing Bubble Blog

A pair of reports from New York. "Home prices in July in Dutchess County returned to an upward path, but the pace of gain is generally slower than it was a year ago. 'We're leveling out, somewhat, but we're not hurting by any stretch of the imagination,' said Sandy Tambone, executive officer of the...

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A pair of reports from San Diego. "July was ice-cold in the North County housing market. Continuing a slowdown that has persisted throughout the year, sales of single-family houses last month plunged 31 percent from July 2005 and sales of condominiums fell 28 percent, according to a report released...

The Wall Street Journal reports on adjustable rate mortgages. "The downside of the lending boom is starting to show. Rising interest rates are taking a toll on family budgets as growth in home prices flattens, and, in some areas, prices fall. The portion of adjustable-rate mortgages that were at...

USA Today looks at the rent versus buy decision. "In some of the nation's priciest real estate markets, the financial reasons for renting instead of buying are the strongest they've been in 25 years. So how out of whack is it now? The national median mortgage payment is $1,687 a month, nearly twice...

The News Press reports on the WCI numbers in Florida. "Bonita Springs-based WCI Communities said Wednesday that orders for its condominium towers have screeched almost to a halt, and businessmen across Lee County said the residential construction industry as a whole is slowing dramatically." "'We...

The New York Times has this report on second homes. "The brand new 6,000-square-foot vacation home has been on the market for more than a year. After plenty of showings, but no offers, the investor who built the house recently cut the price twice, by a total of $600,000, to $4 million." "It has...

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href="http://www.fresnobee.com/local/story/12564707p-13275303c.html" mce_href="http://www.fresnobee.com/local/story/12564707p-13275303c.html">Fresno Bee. "Hundreds more homeowners in the central San Joaquin Valley are in danger of losing their homes to foreclosure this year because their houses are...

A pair of reports from Colorado. The Rocky Mountain News, "Last month was a pretty typical July for the Denver-area home market, with the record inventory of unsold homes creeping up only slightly. 'It is pretty much the same as it has been,' said (realtor) Jerry McGuire, in Highlands Ranch. 'The...

The Arizona Republic has this update from Phoenix. "Home builders had a chance to buy a prime piece of land in northeast Phoenix's Desert Ridge development Tuesday. But sticker shock kept them on the sidelines. No builder or investor was willing to pay the Arizona State Land Department's $150...

Some housing bubble reports from Wall Street. "Toll Brothers cut its 2006 order forecast for the second time, calling the slowdown in housing markets 'somewhat unique' in its largely psychological nature. The homebuilder said backlog dropped 13% and contracts signed plunged 45% from a year ago."...

The Palm Beach post reports from Florida. "Mortgage trouble is creating some of the biggest bargains this side of eBay, allowing buyers to snap up homes for tens of thousands of dollars less than what they might have paid just a few months ago. Notices of pending foreclosures are piling up, in what...

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The Review Journal reports on the July numbers from Las Vegas. "The number of single-family homes for sale on the Multiple Listing Service in Las Vegas climbed 1.2 percent to 20,273 in July from the previous month, the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors reported. The inventory is up 33.6...

Some reports from the northwestern US. "Home sales in western Washington fell for the fifth straight month in July. Brokers reported 8,496 sales last month, down 15 percent from a year earlier. Realtors report that the consistently rising inventory has been a major factor in the sales slowdown."...

Some housing bubble news from Wall Street. "Technical Olympic USA, Inc...reported combined net sales orders of 2,117 for the second quarter of 2006, a 34% decrease from the 3,185 reported in the second quarter of 2005. During the quarter, the Company began implementing efforts to reduce its...

The Times Dispatch has this update from Virginia. "The frenzy is over. Put a house on the market today and you are looking at 60 to 90 days for a sale, real-estate agents say. That's if the house is priced right, and if you live in the Richmond area. Northern Virginia has taken a hit in housing...

The St Petersburg Times has this report from Florida. "Coming off an unusually weak summer sales season, many Tampa Bay area home sellers are confronting a market reality they've dreaded: They'll have to cut prices. With an average of nine homes on the market for every buyer, the biggest supply and...

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