Housing Numbers Show a Hint of Promise -- But Is It Real?

by Regina Lewis Jul 1st 2011 8:00AM
Updated Jul 5th 2011 8:25AM
In a surprising twist, some of the best housing numbers in eight months surfaced Tuesday. We get a lot of real estate related questions from DailyFinance readers, so we thought we'd check in with Editor in Chief of AOL Real Estate Laura Goldstein. She cautioned against getting too excited, too quickly. Underlying the numbers might be a seasonal uptick and stalled foreclosures, which tend to suppress prices. We'll continue to stay on the story, but she suspects we won't know anytime soon whether the favorable numbers will become a trend. In the meantime, it's a welcome aberration, though not one enjoyed in all metro markets.

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91 Comments

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kellua55

that's true. i read this message from my iphones, only 348$ per piece iphone, from this wholeseller. it's cool. www.wontry.com

July 14 2011 at 2:09 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
vcgh2000

The elephant produces 200lbs. of dung a day....a fitting symbol for the GOP.

July 04 2011 at 11:08 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
maa2626

great article from the official obama water boys(and girls) from the huff and puff post. absolute rubbish, regina should be forced to clean out forclosed homes to contribute to society. it will be some time (like ten to fifteen years) unitl real estate is sorted out. I find it amazing we have not heard anything about commercial real estate yet---- hmmmmmmm?

July 04 2011 at 9:50 PM Report abuse -1 rate up rate down Reply
savemycountry911

Mike and Bastian have a questionable agenda.

July 04 2011 at 9:13 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
WILLS

Many valid comments here! We certainly can blame the government (both parties), the banks and wall St. as there is little doubt that they re the primary culprits. The secondary, being appraisers and RE people, could not have did the leg work to make this mess without the blessing of the primary. The job market is a direct result of all of the greed (and stupidity), along with shortfalls in government budgets from the federal level to the bottom of the heap. I really doubt that any "good" figures are anything other than an abberation as there are too many pressures against housing to expect any quick rebound. The good part is that we likely avoided a depression, the bad part is that it is not by much. If you want to guess at the future - take at look at Greece.

July 03 2011 at 3:57 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
maryvesely

What all you Bush blaming idiots forget is that the dems controlled the house during his term. Bush was aware of the housing loans and tried numerous times to work with the dems to correct the situation only to be rebutted over and over again by the government controlled agencies ran by fannie and freddie which of course was controlled by Frank and Dodd.

July 03 2011 at 8:36 AM Report abuse -1 rate up rate down Reply
2 replies to maryvesely's comment
savemycountry911

The idiots forget a lot of things. Too many drugs?

July 03 2011 at 11:18 PM Report abuse -3 rate up rate down Reply
2 replies to savemycountry911's comment
bushsnitemare2

YOU MUST BE TALKING ABOUT BUSH.

July 04 2011 at 1:16 PM Report abuse +2 rate up rate down
savemycountry911

No nitemare, it's you looney libs who have fogotten the lessons of the past.

July 04 2011 at 9:14 PM Report abuse -1 rate up rate down
vcgh2000

To all the idiots who blame Frank and Dodd for the houseing meltdown......Google "Financial Services Modernization Act"....of 1999. The Gramm(R)-Leach(R)-Bliley(R) Act that repealed The Glass-Steagall Law which prohibited saving banks from engaging in the risky financial practices of the Commercial Banks.....if Clinton had any common sense this bill would have been vetoed, saving this country a lot of grief.

July 04 2011 at 9:00 AM Report abuse +2 rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to vcgh2000's comment
savemycountry911

Clinton common sense. That is an oxymoron.

July 04 2011 at 9:15 PM Report abuse -1 rate up rate down
fmirabelli

There are many variables causing the continuing real estate crisis:
1. Obama tightened creidt even more by regulating who can get credit.
2. Banks themselves know that each foreclosed property bought or sold under MERS (electronic settlement) cannot be validated becuase know one knows who actually owns the property or the original mortgage.
3. Barney Frank and Cris Dodd created mortgages for people who cannot afford a mortgage through Fannie and Freddie Mac and gave the banks a guaranteed loan.
4. Banks sold portions of the loans through bundles creating instant wealth from properties that the banks knew did not have value, but the governmdent guanteed the loans.
5. Obama's over regulation now creates the impossible task of selling properties to people who cannot meet the credit requirements with towns and cities now have more and more vacant properties without a consistent tax base.
6. the average person cannot buy a home becuase income requirements are now so strict that banks want a minimum of 25% down without any loans whatsoever and a high FICO socre of 760 or higher with 32% of the back end income going for housing...nearly impossible to follow.
7. Obama believes the housing crisis will solve itself...that is why he ended the initiatives to buy a home. Obama beleives the government should not allow property tax allowances giving the government more tax dollars.
8. Property values can not stabilize if people cannot get credit, have a job with the government wanting to collect more and more taxes.
9. this is not just an Obama problem...housing goes back to Clinton through the American Dream program.
10. Solving the housing problem is difficult becuase it requires nearly every part of the industry to work together: US government to eliminate the defunct mortgages, banks giving credit again, job creation through the private sector and most important ending out of control government spending to reign in the debt.

July 02 2011 at 12:34 PM Report abuse -4 rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to fmirabelli's comment
vcgh2000

I might add that the housing bubble itself was one of a sequence of bubbles created by "Easy Al Greenspan" who flooded the country with "liquidity" which led to run away real estate speculation....real estate appreciation at 10% with flat wage growth was a recipe for disaster....it will take 5 years to clear the unsold inventory of homes that are presently not on the market.

July 03 2011 at 10:09 PM Report abuse +2 rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to vcgh2000's comment
vcgh2000

good question ...the 5 years that I cited was the only article that I read that would hazard a guess on how long the overhang of unsold inventory that is being held off market, the next wave of ARM resets, and any number of variables such as robosighnings will affect the market....if anything, it's all guesswork.

July 04 2011 at 8:49 PM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down
efeeezy

No still a corrupt system appraisers overspricing house values so they can make more commission and money for the banks imo

July 02 2011 at 2:08 AM Report abuse +3 rate up rate down Reply
vlady1000

The banks still have their heads "where the sun don't shine". They still do not understand real estate or reconize a solid investor that has been around, made it thru this mess without any issues, etc. New rules have been established that now has the solid investor's hands tied. I have seen some really stupid moves by many large banks due to these new rules which has cost them big money, a guarenteed loss, and hurt the housing market. Maybe they ought to throw in a RE class of two in the college programs when getting their Finance degrees.

July 01 2011 at 11:55 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
JoanneVLavender

Housing starts show a hint of promise when it's your house that is sold to a buyer.

Housing starts show NO promise when it's your house that is on the market for a year or more.

July 01 2011 at 9:52 PM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply