A report from Inside Indiana Business. "After a record-setting 2018, what does 2019 hold for the Indiana housing market? F.C. Tucker Co. Chief Executive Officer Jim Litten says it can be another banner year for housing. Litten cautioned that tight inventories, which led to rising prices and bidding wars in some parts of the state in 2018, could persist this year."

"However, he downplayed prospects for a housing bubble in Indiana that some are predicting in markets like Phoenix and Austin. Litten says unlike other hot housing market, affordability remains a plus in Indiana. 'In some of these markets, the average sale price has gone up so much, and incomes haven’t gone up commensurate with the price of real estate,' said Litten, who notes only about 20 percent of California residents can afford a home, while in Indiana that number is 80 percent."

The Orange County Register in California. "Saying your product is 'unaffordable' is bad salesmanship for housing. We know it’s not easy to comfortably afford local housing. And, yes, compared with other parts of the nation, the bang-for-the-buck of a home purchase can seem skimpy."

"But we’re witnessing the slowest homebuying stretch in eight years as the count soars for unsold listings and new homes. I’m wondering if some potential homebuyers have been scared off by repeated knocks about 'unaffordable' Southern California housing and claims that six-figure incomes are required to be successful house hunters."

"Mortgages with small down payments are widely available. Adjustable-rate deals — with cheaper initial rates — are common. And some lenders will let a borrower into a mortgage that pushes a family’s debt payments up to roughly half of their income."

"So, I’m puzzled as to why the real estate industry isn’t publicly pushing harder to get house hunters up to speed on what may be seen as non-traditional buying strategies. The use of adjustable-rate loans for purchases, for instance, runs well-below historical levels."

"Certainly, making huge financial stretches is not for everyone. Or accepting a lengthy commute. But let’s politely note that creativity in Southern California homebuying has long been required. And perhaps that skill isn’t being tapped enough."

"The barrage of reports stating local housing is in 'shortage' and 'unaffordable' — in part creating political pressure for more building — can have an unintended consequence, too. Like, perhaps, being part of why Southern California home sales took their steepest plunge in December since the Great Recession."

From Think Realty on Texas. "Everything’s big in Texas, including the foreclosure auctions. A total of 27,324 Texas properties were scheduled for public foreclosure auction in the first 11 months of 2018, the most of any state and accounting for one in 10 scheduled foreclosure auctions nationwide, according to ATTOM Data Solutions."

"Texas foreclosure auctions are on track to increase 12 percent in 2018 compared to 2017, the first annual increase since 2014. In November 2018, ATTOM Data Solutions reported a 42 percent year-over-year increase in foreclosure auctions in Austin, and foreclosure auctions — which start the foreclosure process in Texas — were up 31 percent through the first 11 months of the year compared to the same period in 2017."

From Bethesda Magazine in Maryland. "County Executive Marc Elrich dropped a bomb: forecasted school impact tax revenues had dropped by $121 million, half the amount projected just a year ago. That reflects a worrisome trend in housing construction and will force some very tough choices on county-financed projects."

"And so, the county’s housing construction slowdown is now forcing tough decisions in the capital budget. But there is a silver lining to all this. We are not in a recession. Yet."

From Mansion Global on New York. "We caught up with Roy Stillman, president of Stillman Development International to discuss homes as a place for peace, the uncertainty in the high-end real estate market and more."

"MG: Are you seeing any new hubs for luxury properties? RS: We’re at a place in the economy where the answer is no. We’re at a nuanced time for selecting projects. Unless, you have an exception on your hands, now is not the time to do a residential luxury project."

"MG: What’s the biggest surprise in the luxury real estate market now? RS: Sometimes you do see these outliers. The fact that the most expensive property in the U.S. just sold in New York for $238 million at 220 Central Park South. By contrast, if you look at macro data, you see everything’s red. But here, someone went totally contrary. But as a developer or investor you shouldn’t be playing toward the surprise, you should be playing toward the rule."