# Is The Real Estate Market Healing?



## oregon woodsmok (Dec 19, 2010)

I don't seem to be able to sell my house, but in the meantime, I've been watching other areas where I might like to live and might be able to afford to buy.

Well, this spring, all the really cheap places are gone. The number of foreclosures for sale is greatly reduced.

Sigh. It looks like by the time I can finally get mine sold, there won't be anything left to buy.

But on the happier side, prices look like they are firming up a bit.

Y'all who are talking about buying, you might want to get out there and look while there is still some low priced stuff left and while the mortgage rates are so extremely low.


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## Guest (Jun 3, 2012)

From what I've been hearing there's more foreclosures than ever getting ready to hit the market . What a market does depends on employment in an given area . Employment numbers isn't looking good most places . JMO


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

Are you looking to buy similar property?

Rising property values are a concern of mine but in my case I would be selling a lake home for remote raw land so I'm hoping that when my property value rises it will be faster than remote acreage.


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## Newlife (May 27, 2012)

In the areas I've been looking, I've actually started seeing an increase in the number of foreclosures on the market. I've also seen a lot of deals go under contract; only to have it fall through because of funding issues.

I talked with a realtor in the MO Ozarks when I was considering one property. He mentioned that during the boom years, out of state buyers were coming into the area and paying "cash" because things were so cheap. This drove up the asking prices in the area. The sad thing is that these "cash" deals were just home equity loans based on the value of their main house in another state. As those values dropped, they started liquidating or getting foreclosed. We are just now seeing the beginning of a massive wave of foreclosures and short sales (IMO).

The banks have been sitting on a lot of these properties and refuse to bring them to market. That game can only be played for so long.

It does come down to jobs in the area. Credit remains tight and housing prices will likely continue to drop to more reasonable levels (such as about 2Xs the local average annual income). There may be pockets of price stabilization or increase here and there; but the banks have a lot of junk on the books.

I just don't see a lot of of people buying second homes, vacation homes or retirement homes; when they are still trying to sell their current residence.

It was just a big Ponzi. People wanted their house to increase in price, while at the same time have low prices in other locations...kind of like wanting your cake and eating it too.


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## Uddermost Farm (Apr 25, 2012)

In my area, (Triangle/Raleigh-Durham, NC), the housing market is not only healing, but there are submarkets that are now sellers market ... multiple offers on a single property. Especially with foreclosures. Prognosticators indicate the purchase price of homes in our area will go up more than 2% in 2013. The funding problem someone mentioned is this: most lenders won't finance a property that is not move-in ready. If the HVAC has been stolen, if appliances are missing, if there are repairs that are not cosmetic, you can't get a mortgage even if YOU qualify. The HOUSE doesn't qualify. And the bank/seller will not make the necessary repairs; they are selling it "as-is".


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## rickfrosty (Jun 19, 2008)

Uddermost Farm said:


> In my area, (Triangle/Raleigh-Durham, NC), the housing market is not only healing, but there are submarkets that are now sellers market ... multiple offers on a single property. Especially with foreclosures. Prognosticators indicate the purchase price of homes in our area will go up more than 2% in 2013. The funding problem someone mentioned is this: most lenders won't finance a property that is not move-in ready. If the HVAC has been stolen, if appliances are missing, if there are repairs that are not cosmetic, you can't get a mortgage even if YOU qualify. The HOUSE doesn't qualify. And the bank/seller will not make the necessary repairs; they are selling it "as-is".


Hmm, no offense, but not sure multiple offers on foreclosed homes is back up to a 'seller's market'. Not picking on your post Uddermost, just a good place to jump in.
Real estate will be readjusting itself for some time IMHO (as a broker), and that's not considering the worsening depression we are already in !?
If you don't believe this, you might consider if you are getting the straight dope off the mass media ? Have they told you about one of the biggest economies in the world - Japan - being in a depression since 1989 ??
'Recovery' my aching butt !!
At our agency in a tiny (non-representative ?) resortish village we had the best April in years, but mostly on the strength of sales of foreclosed homes, (not many of these yet, thank god!), or heavily reduced homes where the owners saw the writing on the wall & were willing to bail. (Doesn't take much to have a good month these years !)
I have one house of my own that was supposed to be a 'flipper', but is now a rental being destroyed by tenants. I have $160k in it & would sing & dance all the way to the bank if I could unload that for $120k - will owner-finance to do it !
I have another w/awesome privacy & views, super-insulated newish house - town assesses it at $189k & I'll split off a lot & sell it too for $120k owner-finance in order to get away from it. 
Thank god I do not owe any money on anything !!!!


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## PaulNKS (Jan 11, 2009)

A lot of it depends on what you want. Rural land was never hit as hard as other real estate. For the last 3 years a lot of land in the midwest has skyrocketed. So, if one is wanting rural land, the longer you wait, the higher the cost. But...during that time, save more for a bigger down payment.

Land in this area has almost doubled in the last 3 to 4 years and will most likely double again in the next 10 years.


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## Dusky Beauty (Jan 4, 2012)

Phoenix is *sort of* on a sellers market swing. 
The market has been so poor for so long and there is a glut of HOA planned tract luxury houseing-- A lot of people are moving "up" and into fancier homes, out of bad neighborhoods, and out of an even more expensive california so for the first time in many years there are actually home buyers out there actively looking.

In far out rural areas we are still seeing a lot of cheap properties but financing is a bear. There's a gorgeous place on 4 acres around the corner with mature FRUIT TREES and a nice little 3/2 for only 69k but can't sell in the year it's been listed because the banks don't like that it's on a community well. 
Now--- neither do I care for community well... it's still a really nice standard of living for this area of the country for cheap. 

A decent mobile home on 2-10 acres runs about 30k in my area.


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## NorthCountryWd (Oct 17, 2008)

Healing...as in recovering? I would say no. It's more of going from critical to critical but stable condition. There's still a lot of inventory out there and not many qualified buyers. 

My cousins company handles the HUD foreclosures for our area and told me there are many about to hit the market. Haven't heard much good about Fannie/Freddie lately either.


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## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Here, the market seems to be improving, but is only represented by homes selling, with a slight elevation in values. But the key is WHICH homes are selling. As a Managing Broker in RE, I know what is locally selling. They are Short Sales and Foreclosures. I don't think the trend is good, either. Folks can't sell their homes unless they compete at values equal to the Short Sales and Foreclosures. The former, Short Sales, are the best buy right now. The exceptions are out of state Auction Houses, putting on Auctions, and you can get some real deals that way! A recent example is a home that went for $275K, on 5 acres, rolling, but with a wide open view of the Olympics and the Hood Canal. In addition, it is a well built home. The lot it is on was originally sold for more than the recent sale, by almost $100K! It would have sold for $100K more than that Auction, if sold as a Foreclosure, which net more than Short Sales here, usually. All those sales, based on financial disasters, are continuing to adversely affect the general market trying to sell without financial distress.


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## jwal10 (Jun 5, 2010)

There are no properties selling here, no money. This past month I have bought 2 properties because the owners are really needing the money and just want out. Properties that they paid $24,000 for in 2008, I paid $6,000 for big lots with city water and septic installed. 1-100'x270', the other 150'x150'. No one has money to build, so no one wants them. Houses are sitting empty, in foreclosure, going to ruin....James


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## Bluesgal (Jun 17, 2011)

Here is what is happening in Phoenix:

The inventory is less than 50% of what it was 18 months ago... why? because the foreclosed homes are not being sold by the banks

Any "tract" home less that $225K is being bought by investors paying cash (in most cases), alot of the money coming in from Canada. These homes are being rented out due to the strong rental market of families from foreclosed homes

So while there may have been a 5% increase in price over the last year.... Phoenix is also #2 on the list for most foreclosures IN THE COUNTRY (per msm today).

So even if you can qualify for a loan, you are competing with buyers paying all cash. Of course the sellers prefer the cash deals.

So IMHO, each are is unique unto itself and there are certain "niche markets" that may be doing ok, however, overall, things are still very bad here in AZ.


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## Sonshine (Jul 27, 2007)

WV Hillbilly said:


> From what I've been hearing there's more foreclosures than ever getting ready to hit the market . What a market does depends on employment in an given area . Employment numbers isn't looking good most places . JMO


I agree with you. We have so many empty houses in my neighborhood that no one is even looking at and seems like even more leaving in the middle of the night. I've lost count on how many stand abandoned now. Sad in a way, but it's been pretty peaceful around here.  Most of the ones that are still here are older people, or people who payed their homes off early so didn't worry about foreclosures.


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## Pony (Jan 6, 2003)

Latest national reports are indeed that there is a new, hefty wave of foreclosures in the wings - despite recent reports that all is well, and that the private sector is thriving. 

Not quite.

This is a depression, no matter what spin TPTB try to put on it. We haven't hit bottom, and it will take a long time to climb back up, especially if people continue to see reality.


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## jwal10 (Jun 5, 2010)

The lady next door to where I just started building a cabin, came over to see if she can rent it when done, She is 78, with no money to fix her old house, no foundation or insulation, roof leaks and needs a lot of work. Better to start over. Right now I have people wanting to rent, faster than I can build these little cabins. Talked to her again yesterday, she asked if I could build her 1 in exchange for the 3 extra lots. She would move in this one, I would salvage a little out of her old house and incorporate it into her cabin so it will feel more homey. When done she would move into hers and I would have the fire department use her old house for a burn to learn. Then I would build 1 each on the 3 extra lots. Times are tough and it is sad to see people who have owned a home for 50 years with no money to keep them up. People on fixed incomes are finding they can't pay rent, heating bills and put food on the table. Something has to change in this country....James


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