2.2% Decrease in Existing Home Sales for October

Housing Market Woes Continue

Tight lending restrictions and high unemployment as still affecting an already struggling housing market.

According to the National Association of Realtors, sales of existing homes fell 2.2% in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.3mln units. The height of the Market was back in September 2005 with a peak of 7.25mln units sold. That is a decrease of 38.9% in the last 5 years.

The past July was the slowest pace for sales in the last 15 years. The market gained some momentum in August and September, but these latest numbers for October remind us that we are still not out of the woods.

Bond Buying Drives Mortgage Rates to New Lows

30 yr falls to 4.17%, lowest on records dating back to 1971

Since the Fed announced that it would be pouring $600bln into Bonds, mortgage rates have been doing what they are supposed to be doing, heading down again and touching new lows.

This week the Fed stated it would be aggressive over the next 30 days and pound in $105bln. The extra demand signals that the yield on treasury bonds will go lower and mortgage rates tend to track those yields.

Is 4% or lower for a 30 year mortgage finally possible? I guess we will see over the next 30 days.

If you are thinking about buying a new home or investment property, there has never been a better time to do so. These low rates combined with lower proeprty value create a unique opportunity to own a home for a lot less than you would have paid 3-4 years ago.

If you are on the fence and are afraid in this market, here is your push to get it done. Always remember Real Estate and owning a home is a long term investment. In the long term, the property will always be worth more than you paid.

Feds Bold Move to Boost The Economy. Commits to Buy $600bln in Bonds

Fed Looks to Further Lower Borrowing Costs

In what some are calling a risky move, The Federal Reserve has agreed to buy $600 billion in Government Bonds in a move to drive interest rates lower. Their hopes are to create jobs and boost the economy out of the funk it is still in.

Two ways to stimulate economic growth are to encourage people to spend money and increase hiring.

Many say the plan will provide the boost, but will not solve our problems.

There are several risks associated with this move too. Some of these risks include further weakening the dollar, creating price bubbles on stocks and commodities and driving inflation to dangerous levels.

Foreclosures in New York up 46% in Q3 2010

Most Cities are up YoY

According to a Report from Realty Trac, year over year foreclosure activity was up in 65% of all U.S Metro Areas including New York.

A total of 20,504 foreclosure filings on NY area properties were received. This includes notices of default, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions.

Even though filings were up 46% Q3 2010 vs Q3 2009, there was an 8% decrease in Q3 from Q2 this year.

Daren Blomquist, a spokesman for Realty Trac said New York has "avoided the worst of the foreclosure problems and continues to do so" despite the year over year increase in foreclosure activity.

Mortgage Rates Inch Up from Record Lows

30 yr at 4.23% with 15 yr at 3.66%

Mortgage rates were up slightly this week but still near record lows.

Rates have been on a steady decline since April as investors have been pouring money into treasury bonds. The demand on the bonds lowers their yield and mortgage rates tend to following the yield down.

The low mortgage rates have helped the refinance market but have done little to spark the purchase market.

Rates on five-year adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 3.41%, up from 3.45% a week earlier. Rates on one-year adjustable-rate mortgages remained at an average of 3.3%.

Home Prices are Weaker Around The Country. NY Shows Small Increase

Home Prices Fall .2% according to S&P/Case Schiller Index

With tons of new foreclosures expected to hit the market over the next several years, many expect prices to come down even further. This will hurt some areas that may have seen some sort of recovery.

This week S&P/Case Schiller released it's index for home prices for 20 major cities. 15 of those 20 cities posted declining home prices.

New York, Washington and Chicago have shown consistent price increases since the spring time. Although these increases are small and have faded over the summer, New York has had less foreclosures than these other cities.

However, the foreclosure mess is far from over with 2.4 million homeowners behind at least 90 days on their mortgage. These folks represent the "shadow inventory" as there are already 2 million loans in foreclosure.

FBI Now Looking into Foreclosure Mess

Big Brother Checking to See if Any Laws Were Broken

This may get ugly everyone.

A foreclosure document crisis is the newest mess to hit the housing / lending industries. Now the FBI is in the beginning stages of checking in to see if any laws were broken or if violations have occured.

In the banking industry, things were so overwhelming when it came to foreclosures that some may have acted with criminal intent whether they knew it or not.

Althought most of the Bigger Banks feel their documents are now in order and accurate, they can't just say that the mess is over. The still face opposition in the following ways....


•Attorneys general in all 50 states are jointly investigating whether lenders violated state laws.
•Lawyers for evicted homeowners are preparing lawsuits against major lenders.
•State judges have signaled they will review the banks' foreclosure documents with skepticism.
•Lawmakers on Capitol Hill plan to hold hearings.

So long story short....this is not over