A report from the Wall Street Journal. "The next time you buy a house, your lender might deploy a drone and a computer algorithm to size up the property instead of a tape-measure-toting human appraiser. Federal regulators are moving to allow a majority of U.S. homes to be bought and sold without the involvement of licensed appraisers, by increasing from $250,000 to $400,000 the value of homes exempt from a human evaluation."

"Regulators say the immediate effect of loosening appraisal requirements would be limited because most home loans in that price range are bought by mortgage giants, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, or guaranteed by other federal agencies. Those typically require valuations by licensed human appraisers regardless of home value, though Fannie has begun to eliminate appraisal requirements for some refinancing loans."

"Moody’s Investors Service has been among those that have warned that eliminating appraisers from deals heightens risks for investors. Alternatives such as broker price opinions—which are a type of perfunctory evaluation performed by real-estate agents and even outsourced to office workers in India who use online data—or computer-driven automated valuation models 'would weaken the credit quality of new residential-mortgage-backed securities,' Moody’s has said."

From The Oregonian. "Buying a home seized by the lender is more complicated than a traditional residential real estate transaction. Negotiations and contracts are different, the owner is most likely out of state and the title search is limited, resulting in a special warranty deed."

"In this week's real estate gallery, we look at some of the 80 homes categorized by the Multiple Listing Service as REO (real estate owned by banks or other lenders), from chic to shabby, condos to Craftsman houses.
Brooklyn neighborhood: 3932 S.E. 16th Ave. is listed at $387,900. 'Huge price reduction,' say listing agents Valerie Hunter and Damien Pogue."

"Alameda neighborhood: 3117 N.E. 33rd Ave. is listed at $407,100. 'Buyers responsible to rectify the permits liens on the property and dues diligence regarding all lien issues, contact county for details. There are repair or demo liens to be taken care of after closing. Home priced with these liens taken into consideration,' says listing agent Leslie Edwards. West Linn: 6130 Caufield St. is listed at $599,900. 'Bank owned beauty with its own forest,' says listing agent Don McCredie."

"Northwest Heights: 3927 N.W. Devoto Lane is listed at $944,800. 'REO Occupied - the seller does not represent or guarantee occupancy status. No viewings of this property. Please do not disturb the occupant. 'As is' cash only sale with no contingencies or inspections. Buyer will be responsible for obtaining possession of the property upon closing. Property is lender-owned, is being sold as is, and seller makes no representations or warranties,' says listing agent Leslie Edwards."

The San Francisco Chronicle in California. "San Francisco is still the most competitive housing market in the country, but even here the bidding frenzy seems to have died down, according to recent Redfin data. Only 35 percent of offers written by Redfin agents for SF buyers faced a bidding war in July 2019, compared with a staggering 72 percent just one year earlier."

"Second-place San Diego saw only 21.3 percent of Redfin buyers in competition, followed by Boston in third place (16.4 percent), then LA (16 percent), Philadelphia (14.3 percent) and Denver (14 percent). San Jose came in just behind Denver at 13.3 percent. These figures are all down significantly from one year ago, and in many of the most expensive markets the bidding war rate was down to less than half of what it was one year earlier."

"Nationwide, the picture for buyers was even rosier. Only 11.2 percent of offers submitted by Redfin agents for their buyers were in competition, down from 45 percent in 2018 and the lowest figure since 2011."

The Village News in California. "Fallbrook’s overall price average is down just under 3%. Sounds like a winning situation for buyers. Sellers, on the other hand, have already seen price decreases over the past year. Thirty-eight percent of all homes sold in California over the past 12 months, had a price reduction, before receiving an accepted offer."

"If you’re a homeowner and are planning on selling, now is the time. If you think you have the luxury of waiting it out, remember 2008. If the economists are correct, and if we have additional price adjustments, we are potentially looking at a drop-in price and an increase in interest rates."

"The housing market peak was in the second quarter of 2018. The adjustment in pricing has started. By lowering the interest rate, Federal Reserve is attempting to prop the economy up."

From Domain News on New York. "A luxury apartment overlooking New York City’s Central Park has returned to the market with an eye-watering discount. The huge, 522-square metre, two-storey unit was most recently listed in 2012 with a $US95 million ($140.66 million) asking price but failed to sell after its brief stint on the market. It has just been listed for sale again at a much more modest $US49 million."

"That makes the discount for the Ritz-Carlton penthouse about the $US46 million ($68 million) mark, more than anyone has paid for an apartment in Australia."