In the fourth quarter of 2011, 85 percent of homeowners who refinanced their first-lien home mortgage either maintained about the same loan amount or lowered their principal balance by paying-in additional money at the closing table, a 26-year high, according to Freddie Mac. Of these borrowers, 37 percent maintained about the same loan amount, and 49 percent of refinancing homeowners reduced their principal balance; this latter percentage reflecting “cash-in” borrowers was the highest in the 26-year history of the analysis.
“Cash-out” borrowers, those that increased their loan balance by at least five percent, represented 15 percent of all refinance loans, the lowest percentage in the 26 years of analysis; the average cash-out share during the 1985 to 2010 period was 46 percent.
The median interest rate reduction for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was about 1.4 percentage points, or a savings of about 26 percent in interest rate.
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The Orange County Register
California house prices had the seventh-biggest price drop among U.S. states in November, falling 5.9 percent from year-ago levels, according to data firm CoreLogic
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http://lansner.ocregister.com/2012/01/10/156906/156906/
Home values in the United States were essentially unchanged in November, decreasing a marginal 0.1 percent from October, according to this month’s Zillow Real Estate Market Reports. Annually, the Zillow Home Value Index fell 4.6 percent from November 2010 to $147,800 and has returned to late 2003 levels.
Regionally, home values appreciated or remained flat from October to November in 60 percent of the 165 housing markets covered by Zillow, compared with 24 percent the year prior. Major metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) that experienced flat or increasing home values include Los Angeles, Washington, Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., San Francisco, and Detroit. On an annual basis, the median home value is down for nearly all (90 percent) of the 165 MSAs covered by Zillow, although the rate of annualized depreciation has slowed significantly in the majority of the markets.
“Even with the anticipated increase in foreclosures, look for 2012 to be a transitional year in which home values fall modestly followed by a prolonged period of flat home values,” said Zillow Chief Economist Dr. Stan Humphries. “We’re still three to five years away from ‘normal’ housing market conditions.”
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Instances of financial abuse and fraud against the elderly increased from November 2010 to January 2011, according to a recent report from MetLife, which found overall investment fraud targeted towards older Americans is on the rise.
Americans over the age of 65 lost nearly $3 billion to financial abuse from April to June 2010, up 12 percent from the same period in 2008, according to the report. During that time, 51 percent of the fraud cases reported were perpetrated by strangers, 34 percent by family, friends, and neighbors and 12 percent by businesses. In a separate look at the holidays, MetLife reports fraud by family and friends increased to 45 percent.
The Wall Street Journal
CoreLogic reported that home prices in October declined by 1.3 percent from September and by 3.9 percent from one year ago. A separate index by LPS Applied Analytics showed that home prices in September had dropped by 1.2 percent from August.
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http://blogs.wsj.com/developments/2011/12/06/why-home-prices-are-and-arent-stabilizing/
The rate of homeownership fell to 65.1 percent in April 2010, 1.1 percentage points lower than it was in 2000. The decline was the biggest drop since the 1930s, when homeownership plunged 4.2 percent.
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http://money.cnn.com/2011/10/07/real_estate/home_ownership/index.htm?hpt=hp_t2
NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) declined 1.2 percent to 88.6 in August from 89.7 in July, but is 7.7 percent above August 2010. The Index is a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings. The data reflects contracts, but not closings.
The PHSI in the Northeast fell 5.8 percent to 63.6 in August, but is 1.3 percent higher than August 2010. In the Midwest, the index declined 3.7 percent to 76.2 in August, but is 8.2 percent above a year ago. Pending home sales in the South rose 2.6 percent to an index of 96.9 and are 7.6 percent higher than August 2010. In the West, which includes California, the index declined 2.4 percent to 108.1 in August but is 10.5 percent above a year ago.
“We continue to experience a pattern in which financially qualified home buyers, willing to stay well within their means, are being denied credit – a factor in elevated levels of contract failures,” said Lawrence Yun, chief economist for NAR. “Based on the improving fundamentals of population growth, some job additions, rent increases and higher stock market wealth, we should be seeing existing-home sales closer to 5.5 million, but are expecting just over 4.9 million this year. The unnecessarily restrictive mortgage underwriting standards are attenuating the housing recovery and are a risk factor for the overall economy.”
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Short sales accounted for 12 percent of home sales nationwide in the second quarter. That’s up from 10 percent in the same period last year, says RealtyTrac.
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http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/housing/story/2011-08-28/Number-of-short-sales-on-the-rise/50165284/1
California pending home sales dipped in July, as did the share of sales of distressed properties, C.A.R. reported Monday.
Pending home sales in California fell 1.7 percent in July, according to C.A.R.’s Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI)*. The index was 117.0 in July, down from June’s index of 119.0, based on contracts signed in July. The index was up 4.9 percent from July 2010. Pending home sales are forward-looking indicators of future home sales activity, providing information on the future direction of the market.
The total share of all distressed property types sold statewide fell to 44.5 percent in July, down from June’s 46.9 percent. The share of distressed sales also was down from a year prior, when distressed sales totaled 47.7 percent of all home sales.
Of the distressed properties sold statewide, 17.5 percent were short sales, a decline from last month’s share of 19.3 percent and last July’s share of 20.9 percent.
At 26.7 percent, the share of REO (real estate-owned) sales was down from June’s 27.3 percent figure, but was up slightly from the 26.3 percent reported in July 2010.
Non-distressed sales made up the remaining share of home sales in July at 55.5 percent, up from 53.1 percent in June and 52.3 percent in July 2010.
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Closed escrow sales of existing, single-family detached homes in California dropped 4.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted 458,440 units in July, according to information collected by C.A.R. from more than 90 local REALTOR® associations and MLSs statewide. July home sales were up 4.5 percent from the 438,850 units sold in July 2010. The statewide sales figure represents what would be the total number of homes sold during 2011 if sales maintained the July pace throughout the year. It is adjusted to account for seasonal factors that typically influence home sales.
“Although July sales improved over last year, they were somewhat weaker than expected, given current prices and mortgage rates,” said C.A.R. Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young. “Economic uncertainty and recent developments in financial markets have caused hesitation among buyers, the effects of which we may see in the coming months. We must see sustained job and income gains along with an increase in consumer confidence before we can expect to see consistent improvement in the housing market.”
The statewide median price of an existing, single-family detached home sold in California dipped 0.3 percent in July to $294,230 from a revised $295,210 in June. July’s median price was down 7.6 percent from the $318,550 recorded in July 2010.
“Despite the uncertain outlook, interest rates are at near-record lows, and home prices are favorable,” said C.A.R. President Beth L. Peerce. “Well-qualified, motivated buyers who expect to own their home for more than a few years should carefully study their options now.”
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