The Housing Bubble Blog

Some housing bubble news from Washington. "Worried about the potential for inflation to get worse, Federal Reserve policy-makers at their May meeting considered raising a key interest rate by half a percentage point before opting for a quarter-point increase." "(Economist) Douglas Porter said there...

The head of the Massachusetts realtors did a Q&A. "The red hot housing market in 2005 has begun to cool down this year. But David Wluka, owner of Wluka Real Estate in Sharon, says the market is returning to normal and not crashing. He said the roughly 20 percent decline in sales volume from January...

A reader posted this Review Journal article. "A slowdown in the housing market is rippling through Las Vegas, with layoffs by home builders, mortgage and title companies and other real estate-related occupations. Don DelGiorno, president of KB Home's Nevada division, said the company has reduced...

The Arizona Republic has this housing bubble update. "Pinal County's molten housing market continued its recent cooling trend in first-quarter 2006, as existing-home sales volume fell and prices stumbled. Sales volume for used houses fell 22.6 percent from first-quarter 2005, to 1,110 transactions,...

The Herald Tribune takes us back to Florida. "US Home's master-planned community Stoneybrook at Venice was red hot when it was unveiled in late 2004. In November 2004, when the first Stoneybrook homes were sold to 'lucky' lottery-winning buyers, it was standing-room-only, recalled Realtor Greg...

The Sacramento Bee has an update from California. "Nearly one in every 10 homes, apartments and condominiums started last year in California rose in the Sacramento area, led by Sacramento's Natomas area, the cities of Lincoln and Elk Grove, and unincorporated Yuba County, according to the...

Paul Muolo kicks off a look at housing bubble news from Washington and Wall Street. "In a brief interview with National Mortgage News last week, Countrywide CEO Angelo Mozilo predicted that the industry's correction will last at least another two years. He believes that significant consolidation is...

The National Post has this update from Canada. "Consumers in Alberta are now putting down deposits on housing lots without knowing what the final price for the finished home will be, in the latest example of the desperation for housing in the province." "The bizarre situation in which consumers are...

The Tucson Citizen has this update from Arizona. "For sale signs are a more frequent sight in the yards of midtown Tucson houses. Some even advertise reduced prices. Those who check will find that many of the houses on the market are empty of furnishings and have no cars on the driveway." "'A good...

Some housing bubble updates on Florida. "It may be hard to imagine with all the construction around Brevard County that the local housing market is slowing down. But that's what the latest figures show. There were 577 housing permits issued throughout Brevard in April, up from 433 permits in March,...

Even in Oregon, the familiar signs of a slowing market are apparent. "Builders are easing back on the record-breaking rate of new home construction in some of Oregon's hottest real estate markets. Take Medford: The city issued roughly a third of the permits for new single-family houses last month...

The Times Argus has this update on Vermont. "After five years of record climbs, Vermont's housing market appears to be leveling off. Properties are starting to spend more time on the market, for one thing." "The additional housing stock has allowed buyers to be a little choosier, according to...

The Arizona Republic has a couple of notes on the Phoenix housing bubble. "Home buyers are waffling as much over Sen. John McCain's house as he is over running for president. The north-central Phoenix home has been on the market for seven months. So far, no takers." "The price on the...

The Wall Street Journal reports on efforts to sell the glut of condos. "At a party in Fort Lauderdale last month, guests in clingy cocktail dresses grooved on stage with singer Wyclef Jean. A week later, in Las Vegas, party-goers attended a reception hosted by actress Pamela Anderson. Last Tuesday...

A television station in Hawaii reports it's a renters market. "It's been awhile since renters in Hawaii had anything to look forward to. High prices and strong demand had people scrambling for less-than-perfect places. But property owners say that's changing in renters' favor." "There's been a...

One common topic suggestion is housing bubbles in countries other than the US. "London median prices resumed their upward climb last month, particularly on upper-end houses. What is going to kick the knees out from under that market? can we offer any words of hope to our good friend nhz?" Another...

A pair of reports from the northeastern US. Rhode Island, "As the prime season for selling houses belatedly gets under way, more sellers are accepting market realities, and price cuts on properties that have been sitting on the market for months are now common, agents report." "'You can start to...

What's your housing market observations this weekend? Did you overhear a motivated seller? See an unattended open house? Here are some from the topics thread. From Arizona, "I was playing golf last night with a group I have know for several years. One of them told me that KB Homes laid off 45...

A couple of readers want to know what were your favorites on the housing bubble blog this week. "What was your favorite post/topic this week?" "Which comment/reply scared you the most?" "What made you laugh out loud?" One answered, "I liked the 'this looks like the bottom' with David Lereah...

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