PositiveAngles - March 1, 2012

March 1, 2012
Vol. 5, Issue 2
What are real estate professionals saying to homebuyers and sellers about current market conditions? The successful brokers and sales associates are talking about the strengths that exist in the market. Below are positive angles that appeared recently in the media and underscore why it is a good time to buy real estate. Warren Buffett: I'd Buy Up 'A Couple Hundred Thousand' Single-Family Homes Appearing live on CNBC's Squawk Box, Warren Buffett tells Becky Quick he'd buy up "a couple hundred thousand" single family homes if it were practical to do so. If held for a long period of time and purchased at low rates, Buffett says houses are even better than stocks. He advises homebuyers to take out a 30-year mortgage and refinance if rates go down.
-- Warren Buffett on CNBC, by Alex Crippin, CNBC, Feb. 27, 2012.
NAR: Pending Home Sales Near a Two-Year High in January Contracts to buy previously owned homes in the United States neared a two-year high in January, an industry group said, further evidence the housing market was slowly turning the corner. The National Association of Realtors said its Pending Home Sales Index, based on contracts signed in January, increased 2% to 97 points, the highest reading since April 2010. New contracts generally lead sales by a month or two. Sales have now risen nearly 13% over the past six months. While they are still well below the 6 million that economists equate with a healthy market, the gains have coincided with other changes in the market that suggest more sales are coming. Clearly we had better weather conditions in January that might have helped, but we have a situation where we are seeing a number of housing statistics turn, said Michael H. Strauss, chief economist at Commonfund in Wilton, Conn. It suggests housing is going to be an additive to G.D.P. this year.
-- Pending Home Sales Rebound to a Level Near April 2010, by The New York Times, Feb. 27, 2012.
Homes are the most affordable they've been in decades. And mortgage rates have never been cheaper. Much of the optimism has come because hiring has picked up. More jobs are critical to a housing rebound. Easier mortgage lending criteria, very low rates and the improving labor market are all contributing to the beginnings of a real upturn in home sales, if not yet prices, said Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics.
-- Pending Home Sales Near a Two-Year High, Boosting Views on Housing Market, by Derek Kravitz, Associated Press, Feb. 28, 2012.
As Home Prices Fall, It May Time to Buy a House House prices will continue to fall on a national basis at least through 2012, but you have to look past national headlines to your local market, which is likely already recovering nicely. The trouble with the national numbers is that they are heavily weighted toward the lower end of the market and to the distressed end of the market.
You cannot time housing any more than you can time the stock market. True, housing moves far more slowly, but that works to its benefit, as prices dont rise and fall on daily news or even on major events. Sales have clearly bottomed in housing, and prices always lag sales. They will lag longer this time around, no question, but they will come back. Supply and demand will eventually win out, even after an historic crash. If you cant get a good mortgage now, then perhaps its not your time, but if you can, waiting may not buy you much.
-- As Home Prices Fall Further, Is It Time to Buy?, by Diana Olick, CNBC, Feb. 28, 2012.
Home Sellers Adjusting Prices to Market Reality Michael Feder, CEO of real estate data and analytics firm Radar Logic, says his firms daily readings on the market show a shifting mix of housing activity away from the foreclosure-related or distressed sales in favor of more traditional sales. Sellers are acquiescing to the new reality in pricing, Feder says. The demand for housing is out there, but buyers are holding the line on what they will pay and the supply (sellers) is finally coming around to that level. The increases in activity are relatively small from very low levels, Feder says, but if the trend of sellers accepting prices the market will bear continues there is an awful lot of pent-up demand. The housing market may just be taking baby steps, but the biggest of them is evidence that sellers are being more realistic about prices, Feder adds.
-- U.S. Housing: What More Activity at Lower Prices Means For the Market, by Steve Schaefer, Forbes, Feb. 27, 2012.
Regional Update: News from Markets around the Nation

Boston More single-family homes were sold in Massachusetts last month compared with the previous January, fueling optimism in the real estate industry that the regions sluggish housing market may finally be gaining momentum. The 2,425 homes sold in January marked more than a 3% increase from the same period in 2011 and the highest January total since 2007, according to Warren Group, a Boston company that tracks local real estate. Low prices are bringing buyers to the market, said Timothy M. Warren Jr., chief executive of Warren Group. Given low mortgage rates and steady prices, theres hope this year may fare a bit better.
-- Mass. Home Sales Jump 3 Percent from a Year Ago, by Jenifer B. McKim, Boston Globe, Feb. 29, 2012.
Chicago More existing single-family homes and condominiums were sold in the Chicago area last month than in any January since 2007. The Illinois Association of Realtors reported Wednesday that 4,447 homes were sold in January in the nine counties surrounding Chicago, up from 3,844 a year earlier, a 15.7% increase.
-- Chicago Area Home Sales Up, by Mary Ellen Podmolik, WGN Radio, Feb. 22, 2012.
Florida Home prices statewide rose 5% in January, the Florida Realtors said Wednesday. The median price for existing homes across Florida last month was $129,000, compared with $122,500 a year ago. Pending deals have increased in every month since May and the number of homes for sale statewide has fallen by 34% from a year earlier, according to Florida Realtors. Were seeing positive signs of a strengthening recovery in Floridas housing market, Summer Greene, president of Florida Realtors, said in a statement.
-- Florida Home Prices Rise 5% in January, Miami Herald, Feb. 22, 2012.

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March 1, 2012

Regional Update: News from Markets around the Nation

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