Positive Recent Quotes – Positive Signs in the Real Estate Market

posted: Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Recent Quotes about the Positive Signs in the Real Estate Market: Mortgage Applications Up for Second Consecutive Week Mortgage applications in the U.S. rose for a second straight week, a sign that falling home prices are attracting some buyers. The Mortgage Bankers Association's index of applications to purchase a home or refinance a loan gained 7.5 percent in the week ended July 4. The group's purchase index increased 6.7 percent and its refinancing gauge climbed 8.7 percent. -- “U.S. MBA's Mortgage Applications Index Increased 7.5% Last Week,” by Shobhana Chandra, Bloomberg News, July 9, 2008. First-Time Buyers Impacting Housing Market First-time buyers dominated second quarter sales activity in many U.S. housing markets by accounting for an estimated 54% of existing home purchases, according to HouseHunt’s latest Current Market Conditions national survey of about 2,000 member-agents. This is an increase of 15 percentage points in the past six months. -- “First-Time Buyers Dominated Second Quarter Sales Activity in Many Markets,” RISMedia, July 9, 2008. The key player in any recovery scenario is the first-time buyer. The housing market operates with a pronounced laddering or ripple effect. When entry-level buyers flood the market, they not only stimulate production of new homes, they purchase existing homes. Those purchases, in turn, allow the sellers to move up to bigger houses. -- “On the Path to a Housing Rebound,” by Shawn Tully, Fortune, June 24, 2008. Some Markets Showing Price Gain One bright spot in the (S&P/Case-Shiller) report was that more cities showed a gain in prices in April compared with the previous month. Houses in eight areas rose in value, compared with just two in March. Month-over-month gains were led by Cleveland and Dallas. There may be “some surprises in the next few months that would indicate we are at or near a bottom in probably one-third to one-half of the country.” -- Karl Case, an economics professor at Wellesley College, “S&P/Case-Shiller Home Prices Fell 15.3% in April,” (video) by Shobhana Chandra, Bloomberg News, June 24, 2008. Great Time to Buy for Retirees This might be the right time to find a bargain, especially for buyers approaching their retirement years who can afford to take their time. Of course, anyone looking to buy can also find good reasons to take a wait-and-see attitude, like the fact that good deals may not exist in every location, and no one really knows if prices will continue to decline. “It’s like missing the top of the market — it’s the same thing with the bottom. Generally you know it’s happened because you’re looking in the rearview mirror and it’s passed you by.” -- Maurice Veissi, president of a Miami agency, “Retirees Find the Time May Be Right to Buy,” by Susan Stellen, The New York Times (registration required), June 27, 2008. Falling Housing Starts a Positive Sign for Recovery The news that housing starts have fallen to their lowest level in 17 years sounds like one more reason to be depressed about the shrinking value of your home. In fact, it's an almost certain sign that the path to a housing recovery is finally in sight. If prices are going to stabilize, let alone rebound, the United States needs to produce far more first-time home buyers than new houses. “For the recovery to begin, builders need to eliminate the standing inventory of finished, unoccupied new homes.” -- Mike Castleman, founder of Metrostudy, “On the Path to a Housing Rebound,” by Shawn Tully, Fortune, June 24, 2008. Regional Update: Good News from Markets around the Nation Western Massachusetts … taking a long view tells a different story, because homes are selling today for prices that sellers would have jumped at earlier in the decade — and that trend should eventually spur greater demand and, in turn, stabilize or increase prices. “There’s a misconception out there that nothing is selling, but property will sell if it’s priced right.” -- Steven Laplante, a South Hadely, Mass. agent, “Hello, Good Buy,” by Joseph Bednar, Business West Online, July 7, 2008. Southwest Florida For real estate agents like Lueanne Wood, the news has been a long time in coming: The backlog of homes for sale in Southwest Florida has dropped steadily since the beginning of the year. So far, her June sales figures are already up over the total for June 2007, and her sales last month increased five-fold when compared with May 2007. “The baby boomers are back and they are coming from everywhere and they don't discuss taxes or insurance -- that's not even in their vocabulary.” -- Lueanne Wood, a Venice, Fla. agent, “As Inventory Falls, Agents' Hopes Rise,” Herald-Tribune, June 30, 2008. Northern New Jersey At a time when most developers are hanging up their tool belts to wait out the housing downturn, Diane Mauriello is constructing luxury homes in northwest Bergen County. Mauriello has bought about a dozen properties, mostly older homes that she'll tear down and replace. Prices for such properties have cooled off, though there still aren't many steals in these high-end towns. “Now's the time to buy. If you have a plan, if you know how to do it cost-effectively, if you keep to budget and if you're motivated, it's a win-win situation.” -- “Builder Undaunted by the Housing Downturn,” by Kathleen Lynn, The Record, June 29, 2008.