The Housing Bubble Blog

A report from CBS News. "Home prices have enjoyed explosive growth in recent years, but that run-up may be nearing an end. Combined with several years of dramatic price increases, limited inventory and slow wage growth, that is pushing some buyers out of the market. Less demand means sellers can't...

A report from the Vancouver Sun in Canada. "A number of Vancouver realtors believe a significant decline is happening in Metro Vancouver house prices, through official statistics are so far providing more muted signals. Realtor Ian Watt uses the independent figures from SnapStarts Publishing...

A report from the Los Angeles Times in California. "It’s been on again, off again, on again and now it’s sold. Grammy-winning music star Marc Anthony and his wife have parted ways with a second home they own in Tarzana. The closing price was $3.2 million. The East Coast-inspired Traditional, built...

A report from the Palm Beach Post in Florida. "His gubernatorial campaign comes as some in West Palm Beach have soured on Jeff Greene, the real estate mogul who once seemed ready to lead West Palm Beach out of the Great Recession. In 2011, he embarked on a shopping spree that saw him spend more...

A weekend topic starting with Steve Keen, an Australian economist and author. "Australia’s central bank, the RBA (Reserve Bank of Australia) didn’t have to rescue its economy from the crash, because prompt fiscal action by the Australian government (and re-starting the housing bubble via a bribe to...

A weekend topic starting with the Kokomo Tribune in Indiana. "Across Indiana, real estate agents have gone to battle, fighting over a meager supply of homes as they juggle a growing number of potential buyers emboldened by a robust economy. And the amount those buyers are willing to pay is only...

It's Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. "It’s happening in larger, pricier housing markets: Buyers are starting to get fatigued, indicated by modest drops in existing home sales, mostly in competitive Western states like California and Washington. From Seattle to the Silicon Valley to...

A report from ABC 7 News in California. "The Bay Area remains a difficult place where few can afford to buy a house. And that may be one of the reasons why existing home sales are starting to fall by double-digit percentage points in one location -- the South Bay. The latest numbers from the Santa...

A report from First Coast Connect in Florida. "Real estate broker Gabriel Miranda thought it could take a while to sell unit 905. The vacant condo is in Echo Brickell, a recently-built, sleek residential tower that overlooks Biscayne Bay and Key Biscayne. The building has elevators for cars, an...

A report from CBC News in Canada. "The Canadian real estate industry is used to disregarding gloomy predictions. But now, after a decade of laughing in the face of repeated false warnings that a housing slump was imminent, most Canadians affected by real estate — in other words, just about all of...

A report from My News LA in California. "California’s housing market backpedaled in July on an annual basis for the third consecutive month as higher interest rates and rising home prices eroded housing affordability and dampened demand, the California Association of Realtors said Thursday. 'In the...

A report from CNBC. "After several years of rich home price gains, the market appears to have found a limit to what people can afford. Sellers are finally responding by increasingly lowering prices. Approximately 14 percent of all listings in June had seen a price cut, that's up from a recent low...

A report from the Wall Street Journal. "Owners of an apartment complex near Pittsburgh, who wanted to take out a mortgage on the buildings, allegedly made vacant units look occupied by turning on radios, placing shoes and mats outside doors and in one instance having a woman tell inspectors her...

A report from the Times Free Press in Tennessee. "Already, rising home prices and mortgage rates have cut into some home sales, keeping overall sales of single-family homes relatively stable despite the overall improving economy. In June, for instance, single-family home sales by Chattanooga...

A report from the South China Morning Post. "Mr Shen Weipeng is a 29-year-old trust manager in Beijing, working in one of the highest-paid vocations in China. His after-tax income last year was about 260,000 yuan (S$52,000). He decided to cut his spending this year by replacing his favourite...

A report from USA Today on Tennessee. "In Nashville, the median home price was up 8.6 percent annually at $263,000. That came on the heels of four consecutive years of double-digit price increases, Moody’s figures show. But the soaring prices have taken a toll. Homeowners devote 35.1 percent of...

A report from the Voice of San Diego in California. "In recent years, downtown San Diego has become an epicenter of a lot of that new construction at the high end of the market. But there’s a big problem: We need people to start living in those new apartments. As of April, MarketPointe Realty...

A report from Canadian Mortgage Trends. "Last month the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) formally asked the Canada Revenue Agency to take a more active role in verifying income claimed on mortgage applications in an effort to clamp down on mortgage fraud. The CMHC says the move is...

A report from Mansion Global on New York. "Manhattan luxury housing is still feeling the summer sales slump, recording the worst activity since January in the week ending Sunday, according to the Olshan Report. Buyers signed contracts for just 12 homes priced at $4 million or more, one of the...

A report from Bankrate.com on California. "In the California real estate market the 'b' word is on the minds of many: bubble. One place where home sales were legendary for their risky offers, stripped of contingencies to woo sellers with full dance cards, is Silicon Valley. Inventory is fattening...