A report from Inman News. "'While overall foreclosure activity is down nationwide, there are still parts of the country that we need to keep a close eye on,' said Todd Teta, chief product officer at Attom Data Solutions. 'For instance, Florida is seeing a steady annual increase in total foreclosure activity for the 8th consecutive month, which is being sustained by a constant annual double-digit increase in foreclosure starts.'"

"Some parts of the country have seen a spike in the number of foreclosure starts. A total of 17 states, including Washington, Florida and Oregon, saw starts grow over the past year. Florida, in particular, saw some of the largest increases in foreclosure starts in individual cities, with 90 percent annual growth in Orlando and 45 percent annual growth in Miami. Overall, Washington saw a starts increase of 38 percent while Florida saw an increase of 34 percent."

The Orlando Sentinel in Florida. "In Orlando, about 413,000 homeowners, or about 80 percent of all mortgage holders, have built up enough home equity to tap into it, according to Black Knight. It’s reminiscent of the extravagant days of the mid-2000s, when it was common to borrow against homes to pay off credit card debt, buy vehicles and go on vacations."

"Cashing out on home equity was a dangerous move in the early 2000s that left many in trouble, said Jeffrey Fagan, president of the Orlando Regional Realtor Association. It still is risky, even with today’s real estate market, he said. About 2,000 homes entered foreclosure during the first three months of 2019, according to Attom."

"'The whole idea of buying a home and then selling it a few years later is a recent phenomenon,' Fagan said. 'It’s not a good move to buy a home for a short-term investment.'"

The Brownsville Herald in Texas. "Brownsville is among the Texas cities with the biggest increase in Veterans Affairs home purchase loans over the past year, according to Veterans United Home Loans, the largest financer of VA loans in the country. VA purchase loans increased 30 percent in Brownsville from the first quarter of fiscal year 2018 to the same period this fiscal year, according to the lender’s data. The city was second only to Midland, which saw a 35 percent increase over the same period."

"Chris Birk, VUHL director of education, said the state’s increase in VA home loans is concurrent with the national trend, as the past six years have witnessed record-setting, year-to-year increases. The signature benefit of a VA loan is being able to borrow without a down payment, he said, noting that the average VA loan in Texas last year was $246,000."

"'It’s gone from 2 percent of the market historically to almost 12 percent of the market,' Birk said. 'It’s been a huge increase. ... In the wake of the housing crisis a lot of veterans were having trouble getting those conventional mortgages and they started looking for alternatives.'"

From My San Antonio in Texas. "Houston’s home values may be at their peak. According to Zillow, the housing market is already on its way down. While economists are unsure how long the correction will last or how significant it will be, many agree that it is coming."

"'Dallas, Houston and Denver are some of the most overpriced markets in the country,' said Ken H. Johnson, a real estate economist who created the Beracha, Hardin & Johnson Buy vs. Rent Index, which compares the returns of someone who buys a home to the returns of someone who rents a similar quality home and invests the money that would have otherwise been put toward homeownership. The most recent index found that market conditions in Houston placed significant downward pressure on the demand for homeownership."

"'Will this be a catastrophe, like 2009 was for the rest of the country? Probably not,' Johnson said. 'You’re not going to see the foreclosure in massive droves. You’re going to see property appreciation stop. You’re going to see a hard time selling your house.'"

From CNBC. "In the super-competitive luxury real estate market, sometimes you need to supercharge your marketing strategy, literally. When Douglas Elliman real estate broker Senada Adzem recently listed a 12,778-square-foot waterfront mansion in Del Ray Beach, Fla. for $13 million, she revved up the deal by adding 3,000 horsepower."

"Adzem says the bespoke speed boat with five engines is valued at approximately $1.6 million. 'Our clients love a little cherry on top of the deal,' Adzem tells CNBC."

"That townhouse in N.Y.C. with the 'bonus Bentley' scored tons of free press but hasn’t found a buyer yet, even with a $7.3 million price drop from its original 2017 asking price of $36.8 million. A 20,000-square-foot mansion in Beverly Hills, was originally listed in 2018 for $100 million and included a gold-painted Lamborghini and Bentley."

"The mega-home is still for sale and recently had a $32 million price reduction; it’s now listed for $68 million, but those gold-painted rides are no longer included."

From Forbes. "According to Trulia, this is the first time in over two years that 'starter and trade-up homes' have shown the largest inventory increases since 2014 rising 4.8% and 3.5%. It’s the fastest annual growth seen in that starter inventory in over six years."

"The most expensive metros like San Jose and Los Angeles, according to Trulia’s data are 'seeing rising inventory that may be due to slowing demand with homes sitting on the market longer.' It's no surprise that California metros showed top year-over-year inventory increases. Here's a look at those numbers. San Jose topped the list with a 55.4% increase. Los Angeles comes in at 28.5 increase, San Francisco follows at 28.2% and finally, San Diego rings in at 25.8%."

"You can’t talk about pricey West Coast metros/markets without mentioning Seattle. There a very hot market has slowed with a 40.5% year-over-year increase in inventory."

"Let’s look at Days On Market (DOM) in a few of these California metros to get a good idea of just how long some luxury properties are languishing. A 2,730 square foot home in the pricey area of Saratoga, directly west of San Jose recently had a price cut to $2,299,000 from the original listing price of $2,665,000. This home on a cul-de-sac with a large yard and a pool has been on the market for 74 days."

"Heading to Beverly Hills, a traditional-style home built in 1923, which is close to the Beverly Hills Hotel has sat on the market for 229 days. The current listing price of $8,999,999 is down from $11,250,000 when it first came on the market. 'Since homes are sitting longer it’s no surprise inventory is piling up. There just aren’t as many enthusiastic buyers as there were a few years ago,' explains Felipe Chacon, housing economist at Trulia."

From Patch Manhattan in New York. "Condo owners in President Donald Trump's signature tower are having trouble selling their homes for a profit, a rarity in a New York City real estate market that features constantly skyrocketing land values."

"Several homes in the building have sold at a loss in the past two years, Bloomberg first reported. Some condos in the building recorded losses as catastrophic as 20 percent or greater, according to the report."