Despite the housing recovery and home sales running 10.3 percent above the level of a year ago, mortgage originations are falling, signaling weakening refinancings. Read More »

Homeowners with positive equity in their homes have fewer problem loans and are outperforming the national average for defaults. Their default rates are close to pre-crisis norms. Read More »

After accounting one out of four home sales in the depths of the housing recession and fueled turn-arounds in dozens of markets where waves of foreclosures and battered home values scared off other buyers, real estate investors today are playing a greatly diminished role in the housing recovery. Read More »

Slightly over half of appraisers in a recent survey expressed a degree of confidence in the housing market and nearly half reported appreciating home values in their markets. Read More »

Neither an upswing in home sales nor a wave of new multifamily construction is affecting apartment vacancy rates so far this year. Rates are down and rents are strong across the nation. Apartment markets improved across all areas according to the National Multi Housing Council’s (NMHC) April Quarterly Survey of Apartment Market Conditions. All four indexes — Market Tightness (54), … Read More »

Since late last year, industry experts forecast a drop in mortgage refinancings as rates rise and a revival of purchase mortgages as the housing recovery creates business for lenders willing to working with home buyers. The spring housing market is here and now the mortgage market is following. Read More »

The highest tier of homes for sale, which has been the last part of the market to feel the effects of the housing recovery, is on the verge of switching from a buyers’ to a sellers’ market for first time in years. Read More »

The hottest housing prices in the nation at last are encourage more sellers to list their homes, promising more sales and cooler price hikes in the weeks come. Read More »

The inventory of properties in the foreclosure process expanded by nearly 10 percent in the first quarter, casting a pall over the housing recovery as local markets prepare for more foreclosures than expected. However, a high level of demand driving by investor activity may mitigate their impact. Read More »

The Federal Reserve’s policy of buying mortgage-backed securities to keep mortgage rates low may be bolstering upper tier home values rather than helping to make homeownership more affordable for entry-level buyers. Read More »