Market Trends and Condition

The FHA, Federal Housing Administration, has become a popular destination for borrowers in the last few years. With banks and lenders tightening lending, and raising credit score and down payment requirements, the FHA has become the best hope for those who want to buy a home and need a mortgage. However, the FHA is rife with foreclosure properties and is backing a great many loans that are underwater. The agency’s reserve fund has been depleted, and some analysts believe that there isn’t a lot of room left before a taxpayer bailout might be required.

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Real Estate: Why Home Prices Won't Bottom Out
By John Wasik | Reuters – Fri, Nov 18, 2011 1:10 PM EST.. .
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Watching the U.S. home market struggle to rebound is like listening to children in the back of a car. No, we're not there yet.

The National Association of Realtors reported that ten real estate markets are "leading the nation toward a general recovery and stability of the housing sector," but myriad problems are going to weigh down the housing market for months to come.

From MSNBC.com, Home Prices Still Falling

These are year over year price declines:

Mobile, AL -17.7%
Phoenix, AZ -17.6%
Allentown, PA -17.5%
Salt Lake City, UT -15.3%
Gulfport, MS -12.7%
Miami, FL -12.7%
Rockford, IL -12.5%
Virginia Beach, VA -12.5%
Tucson, AZ -11.5%
Akron, OH -11.4%

In the third quarter, according to the National Assn. of Realtors, prices fell in 111 of 150 metro markets tracked.
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Las Vegas May Be Ready for a Comeback

Of course, the real question is how can you tell you're halfway when you're in the middle of the forest.

Read the entire story here:

http://bottomline.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/11/17/8859967-foreclosure-cri...

The five best housing markets are:

Grand Rapids, MI Up 23.7%
South Bend, IN Up 19.8%
Titusville, FL Up 17.7%
Youngstown, OH Up 13.1%
Green Bay, WI Up 12.6%

There are other bright spots across the country but you have to be careful in buying so you are not dependant upon "the greater fool" theory.

Current data shows that 28.6% of homeowners with mortgages owe more than their homes could sell for. This is according to data released by Zillow.com. That’s up from 26.8% in the second quarter. Third quarter home values declined 0.2 percent from the previous quarter and are down 4.4% year over year.
The major factor influencing this increase in negative equity homes seems to be the increasing time involved in the foreclosure process. The robo-signing scandal in 2010 put a huge number of foreclosures on hold, and they’re just now beginning to get back to a normal level, though the time involved is still much longer than it was a couple of years ago.

http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2011/real_estate/1111/gallery.investors/

November 16th 2001 The Next Big Government Bailout?

Inflation adjusted items for 2012 that may be of interest to employers and employees include:
•The value of each personal and dependent exemption, available to most taxpayers, is $3,800, up $100 from 2011.
•The new standard deduction is $11,900 for married couples filing a joint return, up $300, $5,950 for singles and married individuals filing separately, up $150, and $8,700 for heads of household, up $200. Nearly two out of three taxpayers take the standard deduction, rather than itemizing deductions, such as mortgage interest, charitable contributions and state and local taxes.

10 cities that have the fewest number of underwater homes are:
1. Rochester, NY
2. El Paso, TX
3. Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY
4. Buffalo-Niagara Falls, NY
5. Fayetteville, NC
6. Huntsville, ALA
7. Lancaster, PA
8. Oklahoma City, Okla
9. Pittsburgh, PA
10. Honolulu, Hawaii

If you'd like to read the article, link is below...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45229431/ns/business-real_estate/t/cities-fe...

Valerie