California Up in June

An estimated 43,964 new and resale houses and condos were sold statewide last month. That was up 7.3% from 40,965 in May, and down 0.5% from 44,167 for June 2009, according to MDA DataQuick.

California sales for the month of June have varied from a low of 35,202 in 2008 to a peak of 76,669 in 2004, while the average is 50,405. MDA DataQuick’s statistics go back to 1988.

The median price paid for a home last month was $270,000, down 2.9% from $278,000 in May, and up 9.8% from $246,000 for June a year ago. The year-over-year increase was the eighth in a row, following 27 months of year-over-year decline. The bottom of the current cycle was $221,000 in April 2009, the peak was at $484,000 in early 2007.

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• Firm: Calif. June home sales up 7 pct. from May (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Firm: Calif median home price rises in month (seattletimes.nwsource.com)

Phoenix Homes Sales Improve

Phoenix Arizona homes sales are up to a four-year high in April. The median sale price rose above the year-ago level for the second consecutive month. Because of larger price stability and fewer foreclosures and other properties selling below $100,000, according to MDA DataQuick of San Diego.

New Rules for Mortgages

The banks, the government, and realtors: they have all seen their share of blame for the collapse of the housing market. Yet Dale Robyn Siegel, author of The New Rules for Mortgages, is convinced homebuyers must also acknowledge their share of the responsibility to avoid a repeat of their mistakes for future buyers. Certainly there are those who have found themselves in extenuating circumstances. However, Siegel explains the reality is buyers walk into this significant investment with hardly the preparation they need.

“If you put me in front of congress to report how to mitigate a future housing crisis, I would say there is one solution,” Siegel claims. “That’s education.  There is now mandatory education for mortgage loan officers, which is great. However, every home owner must also be educated about the process, benefits and risks of owning a home.”

With lures of tax credits and “fire sale prices,” many are taking the bait to make the same significant investment 2.8 million people were foreclosed on in 2009. “One positive short term affect of the global financial chaos we are experiencing today is lower interest rates,” Siegel points out. However, the dazzle does not change the fact that buying a home is a major long term financial commitment requiring preparation. For the financial health and sanity of homebuyers, as well as that of the nation, Siegel stresses mandatory education, diligence and patience.
Here are steps she advises become standard procedure for all potential or current homeowners: Read more

St. Louis home sales soar 22 percent in March

St. Louis-area home sales rocketed up 22% in March there were 2,620 single-family homes sold in the 11-county region, according to data compiled by the Post-Dispatch from local real estate services. Sales grew in every county from last March, and the median price increased across much of the region.

The gains echo national figures released this morning by the National Association of Realtors, which reported a 16.1 percent bump in sales nationwide from last March, and a 6.8 percent increase from February.

40 percent fewer default notices to California homeowners

Lenders issued 40 percent fewer default notices to California homeowners during the first three months of 2010 than in the same period last year, another sign that the state’s foreclosure crisis is easing, new data shows.

California also saw a sharp drop in the number of trustees deeds — recorded when a house or condo actually is forfeited to foreclosure — in January, February and March, according to the latest figures from San Diego-based MDA DataQuick.

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• Firm: California sees decline in mortgage defaults (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• California Sees Decline In Mortgage Defaults (huffingtonpost.com)
• Firm: Calif Median Home Price Rises in Month (abcnews.go.com)

Foreclosures Dipping Nationwide

Foreclosures are dipping as the number of homeowners on the brink of losing their homes dipped in October, the third straight monthly decline, as foreclosure-prevention programs helped more borrowers.

As an example foreclosure filings in Virginia fell 16 percent from a year ago, RealtyTrac Inc. said today. Also, the filings were down 4.7 percent from September. Those declines could indicate that the problem in the state may be easing.

In Virginia, 5,484 households, or one in every 597 homes, were in some stage of foreclosure activity in October, according to RealtyTrac.

The state was ranked with 19th-highest foreclosure rate in the country. We are seeing lower foreclosure rates nationwide.

U.S. Foreclosures Decreases 6%

RealtyTrac, reports in its just released May 2009 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report that foreclosure filings-default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions-were decrease by 6% from the previous month.
California posted a 4% decrease in foreclosure activity from the previous month.

Default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions in Florida were all down from the previous month.

Related articles:

• Foreclosures Slow 6 Percent in May (abcnews.go.com)
• U.S.home foreclosures fall in May (thestar.com)

U.S. expands housing aid program

Banks could get incentive payments for allowing borrowers to sell their homes at a loss rather than go through foreclosure under new guidelines issued Thursday for the Obama administration’s $75-billion housing plan.

The program, known as Making Home Affordable, focuses on paying lenders to modify distressed borrowers’ loans so that payments are cheaper.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-housing15-2009may15,0,7106579.story

Foreclosure property