The Housing Bubble Blog

Inman News reports on the continuing speculation in housing. "Economist Mark Dotzour said he gave a presentation earlier this year to a group of Texas mortgage professionals in which he asked how many of them had recently closed a mortgage loan for a California resident, about 75 percent raised...

A pair of reports on markets in the Nevada area. "The Lake Tahoe home market continued its slowdown through the first six months of 2006, according to a report released by a Incline Village-based real estate firm. Through the first half of this year, the amount of existing single-family homes sold...

The NAR has the pending sales numbers. "The Pending Home Sales Index,* based on contracts signed in May, was 10.1 percent lower than May 2005. David Lereah, NAR’s chief economist, said the index appears to be moderating." "'The slight change in pending home sales indicates the market is beginning...

Some reports from New York. "A sharp drop in the average price of Manhattan condominiums could revive concerns that the luxury condo boom, which has been seen around the five boroughs at an increasing rate since 2002, could result in a glut of apartments or developers rethinking their pricing...

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The News Press has this from Florida. "Cape Coral may have fewer construction jobs by the end of the year if the four-month decline in single family home permits continues. The city issued 251 permits in June. That's just under half the 525 issued in March and the lowest monthly total since 218...

A trio of reports on housing markets from the northeastern US. From Pennsylvania, "Home sales stalled in York and Adams counties in the first five months of the year. 'It's been flat, I'd characterize it as a high plateau,' said Steve Snell of Realtors Association of York and Adams Counties. 'We're...

Thw Wall Street Journal has this interview with Kenneth Heebner. "To get a lay of the land, we tracked down Kenneth Heebner, who since 1994 has managed the $1.2 billion CGM Realty Fund. It has the best 10-year record of all real-estate-focused mutual funds, according to fund tracker Lipper Inc."...

The Arizona Republic has some reports on the housing bubble. "Following decades of growth measured mostly in new prisons and mobile homes, any cooling hitting the Pinal County home market is a matter of perspective. And from the existing homeowner's perspective, it hurts. Home builders have...

The Washington Post reports that thousands of condos are becoming apartments. "The surge of well-to-do new renters is attracting developers, and at least 4,000 units that had been planned as condos will instead be leased as rentals over the next two year." "Among the renters is Randell Rogers, a...

The San Francisco Chronicle reports on a 'parallel real estate market.' "Condos for sale on cruise ships. May be coming to Bay Area soon. It may be a stretch to call it a real estate tsunami, but putting plush condominiums on seaworthy cruise ships is drawing interest from developers, investors,...

A pair of rare reports on housing in Alaska. "Homer was rich in modest homes on a couple acres of land for prices the average Homer wage-earner could afford. The tide began to shift in the late '90s. The average sales price of a Homer-area home crept upward from $119,000 in 1999 to $132,000 in...

Several readers suggested this article on bankruptcy myths. "Here's how bankruptcy affects your credit, your possessions and your karma. While the bankruptcy laws vary from state to state, every state has exemptions that protect certain kinds of assets, such as your house, your car (up to a certain...

The Finger Lakes Times has this report from New York. "While the surrounding real estate market is cooling a bit, Geneva’s houses continue selling at relatively high prices, buoyed by out-of-state investors with deep pockets. So far this year, though, property is selling more slowly, and for less."...

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The Olympian has this update from Washington. "More adults younger than 30 are entering the real-estate market, and many are doing it at ages uncommon a decade ago. In 1995, people 25 and younger bought 172,000 homes nationally, said Walter Molony, spokesman for the NAR. In 2005, that number jumped...

The Calgary Herald has this housing bubble report from Canada. "For Tim and Erin Luki, a hefty house loan meant settling for fewer future children, cheaper vacations, full-time work for both parents and a lifetime of monthly payments to the bank. So the family is cashing in on what's become for...

Some housing bubble reports from Wall Street and Washington. "Construction spending fell in May by the largest amount in nearly two years as the once booming housing sector suffered another big decline. The Commerce Department reported that building activity dropped by 0.4 percent in May, following...

The News Observer has this report from North Carolina. "In April and May, the number of existing homes sold on the Outer Banks plummeted by more than half compared with the same months last year. On the southernmost stretch of coast, sales in Brunswick County have dropped about the same amount....

The Street.com has this editorial on the housing bubble and the press. "The Business Press Maven, who owns an obscenely overvalued home, wanted nothing more than for the loft in real estate prices to, uh, loft forever. And the real estate party is over. If you don't believe me, just look at your...