The Housing Bubble Blog

The LA Times reports on one town where the housing bubble has burst. "Merced, CA. Where did everyone go? Real estate agent Mark R. Gregory is holding an open house to sell a nearly new three-bedroom on a corner lot, and it's as if the Earth had been emptied. Last year, this Central Valley city...

It's Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. "You buy the biggest home you can afford and use every dime to do it. Now, the worth of your home takes a nose dive. The bubble has burst, leaving you in a financial mess. Don't be afraid, like most nightmares, this one's a lot less scary in the...

Reuters found the inventory statistics that the CAR economist couldn't. "California had more unsold homes in February than at any other time in the past eight years, as sales of existing houses slowed further with rising mortgage rates and high prices. The inventory of unsold homes rose to a...

The Dallas News reports on the condo bust in that city, with the subtitle, 'Three recent projects have been canceled, but no reason to panic.' "At times it seems like all of Dallas is going condo. From high-rises in Uptown to new projects in the 'burbs, residents are embracing the lifestyle. Even...

The Florida press is reacting to the February sales numbers. "Both buyers and sellers are struggling to adjust to the new reality that the boom days are gone. The median price for existing single-family homes in Miami-Dade dropped to $368,700, from $376,300 in January, the third consecutive month...

Please post your topic suggestions here. Especially wanted are localized topics with specifics or links.

The new home sales numbers are out. "Sales of new one-family houses in February 2006 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,080,000, according to estimates released today by the U.S. Census Bureau. This is 10.5 percent below the revised January rate of 1,207,000 and is 13.4 percent below...

The Massachusetts realtors have their February numbers out; the monthly data at the link are PDF files. " After two consecutive years of record-breaking sales in 2004 and 2005, activity in the detached single-family home market has started to return to more normal levels, with the 2,254 homes sold...

The California realtors have their February numbers out. "Existing-home sales dropped significantly in California in February, falling 15.5 percent from the same period a year ago, as inventory levels climbed and median prices continued to escalate, an industry trade group reported today....

The Florida realtors have their February numbers out. "Rising inventory levels and still-low mortgage rates continued to affect Florida's housing market, which is adjusting to a better balance between buyers and sellers following a five-year run of record-pace sales. Statewide, sales of...

A couple of reports on the GSE's. ""Fannie Mae, the largest U.S. home funding company, on Thursday said that its mortgage portfolio shrank by annualized 7.2 percent in February after declining 3.1 percent in January. The retained mortgage holdings ended last month at $720.8 billion, as the...

The Michigan Live site reports on why inventory levels are so important. "Oakland County homebuyers are taking their new-found negotiating power to the bank, winning concessions, from furniture to money for roof repairs, as the inventory of homes on the selling block increases. Savvy buyers,...

The Illinois realtors have some numbers out. "Single-family home sales were up 4.4 percent in February, while total home sales (which include single-family and condominiums) were up 1.8 percent to 9,936 homes sold, compared to 9,759 homes sold in February 2005. The Illinois median home price in...

The existing home sales data for February is out. "Existing-home rose in February following five months of decline, indicating a stabilization is taking place in the market, according to the NAR. Total existing-home sales ncreased 5.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate1 of 6.91 million...

A pair of reports on the Florida housing bubble. "The Orlando area's existing-home sales set another record in February, with prices leveling off but buyers and sellers still signing contracts at a brisk pace, defying predictions of a slowdown. The number of homes for sale in the Orlando area,...

A blogger sent in this LA Daily News report. "Two reports out last week - one from DataQuick Information Systems and the other from the Southland Regional Association of Realtors in Van Nuys, came to the same conclusion: Sales are well off the year-ago pace. On a month-to-month basis, prices have...

A homebuilder has some numbers out. "Home builder KB Home on Wednesday said its fiscal first-quarter profit rose 42 percent, partly on higher home prices, and maintained its outlook for the year, despite a fall in new orders. The Company generated 8,719 net orders during the quarter ended February...

The Arizona Republic looks at the numbers that came out yesterday. "Home buyers and sellers and real estate agents all can find something to like about the latest numbers from the ASU. Yet, the figures also show the conflicting forces roiling a market still struggling to regain the equilibrium it...

The Capital Times reports on the housing glut in Wisconsin. "The flood of homes and condominiums hitting the market in Dane County appears to finally be impacting prices, according to the latest statistics from the Realtors Association of South Central Wisconsin. The 1,133 homes and condominiums...

Many readers sent in this BBC report on fraud in the real estate business. "An undercover investigation reveals the secret world of estate agents' dirty tricks. My boss congratulates me on getting an offer on a flat that has been overvalued by £60,000. The newly-wed young couple viewing the...