Mike’s Real Estate Show

The “Housing Assistance” Bill just signed by President Bush has a first time homebuyer tax credit of $7,500.

• This is the maximum amount allowed (10% of the sales price or $7,500).
• It also is for those who have NOT purchased a home in the past 3 years and is for your primary residence.
• Limited life-span–Homes purhased after April 9, 2008 and before July 1, 2009.
• Make over $150,000–NO credit
• It needs to be RE-PAID!! It amounts to a tax-free loan initially. You have to pay $500.00 per year for 15 years.
• Can be recaptured! Seller early than 15 years? Whatever’s left you pay THAT year!
• Move to another home? If within the 15 years you pay!
• Talk to your CPA to see if this is REALLY that good of a deal!

The tales of bank “runs” (no, it wasn’t something they ate!-maybe junk “bonds”) but the runs we remember from “It’s a Wonderful Life” when the word gets out a bank may be facing insolvency–folks come and get their money! This is what happened with IndyMacBank. One of the big boys (4th largest), solid as shale in a hillside!! Read the rest of this entry »

Last Week in the News –Mortgage applications for the week ending June 27, 2008 increased 3.6% from the previous week, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported July 2. Refis were up 4.7%, while purchase volume increased 2.8%.

The upward trend in mortgage application volume could continue if mortgage rates fall as they did last week (ending July 3), reversing a three-week rise, according to Freddie Mac’s weekly mortgage rate survey. The easing was due in part to economists’ expectations that inflation will moderate later this year. Read the rest of this entry »

Last Week in the News
——————————————————————————–Sales of existing homes rose 2% in May to a seasonally adjusted annual level of 4.99 million units, the National Association of REALTORS® said June 26. It was only the second increase in the last 10 months. The inventory of unsold homes shrank 1.4% to 4.49 million units, representing a 10.8-month supply at the May sales pace, down from an 11.2-month supply in April. Meanwhile, the median price of an existing home sold in May dropped to $208,600, a decline of 6.3% from a year ago. Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday, the Fed announced that the Fed funds rate would remain at 2.00% as the market expected. This morning’s May existing home sale number rose 2% to reach 4.99 million units (annual rate) as the lower housing prices started to lure buyers back into the market. The supply of homes for sale still remains about twice the level of that in a stable market. Read the rest of this entry »

Last Week in the News

The Conference Board’s index of leading economic indicators inched ahead 0.1% in May, matching April’s increase and equaling analysts’ expectations. The index, released June 19, is designed to forecast economic activity in the next three to six months based on 10 components, including stock prices, building permits and initial claims for unemployment benefits.

The Producer Price Index (PPI), which measures the cost of goods before they reach store shelves, rose 1.4% in May, the biggest increase since November, the Labor Department said June 17. However, core PPI, which strips out energy and food prices, increased 0.2% in May, an improvement from a 0.4% rise in April.

Housing starts slumped 3.3% in May to an annual pace of 975,000 units, a level not seen since March 1991, the Commerce Department reported June 17. Although May housing starts were down 25% in the Midwest, 10.3% in the West and 4.4% in the South, the Northeast saw a 61.5% jump, led by a rebound in multifamily projects. Meanwhile, building permits in May fell to an annual rate of 969,000, slightly better than the 960,000 rate that economists expected.

Pressured by rising mortgage rates, mortgage application volume fell 8.7% for the week ending June 13, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported. For the week ending June 18, Freddie Mac said rates on 30-year mortgages continued climbing, reaching their highest level in nine months, reflecting more concerns about what the Federal Reserve will do to combat a growing inflation threat.

The number of newly laid-off workers seeking unemployment benefits for the week ending June 13 fell by 5,000 to 381,000, the Labor Department reported June 19. The biggest increases for jobless benefits came from California (10,778) and Florida (6,164).

Economic news due out this week includes reports on new home sales on June 25 and existing home sales on June 26.

Economic data compiled from government reports and news services Bloomberg.com, msnbc.com, cnbc.com, cnn.money.com and Yahoo Economic Calendar.
 
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