News Roundup for the last week of September 2007

For additional news articles, view my newsletter’s articles at http://changhomes1.blogspot.com/. To subscribe, please email changhomes@gmail.com.

Locally, we expect the latest housing market statistics this upcoming week. Look for the latest information on home sales in the Tri-Valley area in next week’s summary.

The LA Times report that new solar-powered homes are beginning to outsell traditionally wired new homes in several markets, catching the attention of developers across the state. (9/25)


Nationally,
Sales of new single-family homes in August slid 8.3 percent according to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development. (9/27)

Mortgage Bankers Association states application volume for the week ending Sept. 21 declined 2.8 percent to 654.2, down from 673.2 a week ago. (9/26)

U.S. Housing and Urban Development Assistant Secretary Darlene Williams says mortgage defaults are stabilizing, and subprime loans are still needed. (9/24 via AP)

CNN featured two organizations that are helping families prevent foreclosures. "In the past, most people came to us seeking advice on how to buy a home. Today, they're looking for advice on how to save a home," said Doug Robinson, spokesman for Neighborworks.

Tracy Morgan is a spokeswoman for the Home Ownership Preservation Foundation, which operates a foreclosure hotline (1-800-995-HOPE) for Neighborworks. Last year, she said, the hotline handled about 75 calls a day nationwide. By June, 2007, the number ballooned to 750. For this September, the average day has brought about 1,300 calls.

CNN also reports Housing markets continued to slump across the nation in August as the number of existing homes sold dropped for the sixth straight month to their lowest level in five years, according to the latest report from the National Association of Realtors. Sales fell 4.3 percent from July to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 5.50 million. Sales have fallen 12.8 percent since last August's pace of 6.31 million homes.

Lawrence Yun, senior economist for NAR, blamed the current credit crunch. "The unusual disruptions in the mortgage market, including a significant rise in jumbo loan rates, resulted in a fairly high number of postponed or cancelled sales, with many buyers having to search for other financing when loan commitments fell through," he said in a statement.

The slump pushed up the inventory glut to 4.58 million existing homes, an all-time high. There is now a 10-month supply of homes on the market at the present rate of sales.

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