A report from the Reno Gazette Journal in Nevada. "Although turning over houses at a profit was a popular strategy during Reno-Sparks’ housing rebound, flipping activity has cooled as home prices reached record highs. Since peaking at $420,500 in May, the median price for an existing single-family home in the city of Reno has hovered steadily just above that $400,000."

"Realtor Stacey Berger used to work a lot with investors who would flip properties within a month after doing renovations. With the thinner margins and higher cost for labor and materials, however, flipping has seen a significant decrease. In a way, Berger says it’s reminiscent of the early 2000s when the area had its previous housing boom. The main difference is that there isn’t a huge influx of the speculative homebuying seen during the housing bubble years, she added."

"'The flippers have definitely slowed down,' Berger said."

From Miami Agent Magazine in Florida. "Is Miami’s condo market positioned for growth or will developers struggle to deliver new projects amid a crowded market? Michael Koval [ONE Sotheby’s International Realty: It’s the latter unfortunately. The fact is, there is still lots of inventory and prices are still astronomically high. The market is influenced a lot by what happens with foreign investment and foreign buyers have retreated significantly. That said, there are always going be people interested in property down here. Right now, supply outstrips demand and sellers have yet to acknowledge that fact."

From Houston Agent Magazine in Texas. "Will 2020 be a buyer’s market? Why or why not? Julie Brann [Bernstein Realty]: I think 2020 will continue to be a buyer’s market, since there is currently a lot of inventory. I also think a lot of that depends on the oil and gas industry. That industry seems to drive a lot of home purchases. I’m noticing a lot of relocating employees are looking to rent my listings; a few years ago, these might have been buyers. I think companies appear to be taking less risk than they used to."

"Chance Brown [CB & A Realtors]: It depends on how you look at it. From an economist’s view, one to four months of inventory is a seller’s market. From that standpoint, I don’t believe it will be a seller’s market. I believe two camps will emerge: those who prepare and price their homes to sell and those who think it’s still 2017 and they can put their home on the market and three days later it will sell even though they left their underwear on the floor. That last group will have a tougher time selling."

The Voice of Orange County in California. "For many Orange County homeowners living near fire hazard areas, obtaining reasonably-priced home insurance is becoming just as much of a disaster as the wildfires themselves. Racquel Hernandez, a Rancho Santa Margarita homeowner, was insured with Travelers, until her rates increased from $1,200 to $2,200 this year."

"Guy McIntire, another resident of Rancho Santa Margarita, was insured with AAA for 20 years until his policy was cancelled recently due to 'proximity to brush.' There is no brush near his house, he said, but portions of his neighborhood are included in a high fire area. 'There won’t be any progress in fair regulation until there is genuine outrage among the public and the media that will drive change,' McIntire said."

The Park Record in Utah. "Much of the attention at the recent event appeared to center on the first phase of Woodside Park, a municipal project on the 1300 blocks of ark Avenue and Woodside Avenue. The seven-unit project is expected to draw broad interest as a Dec. 6 pre-application deadline nears. The houses in the first phase of Woodside Park are priced at between $205,000 and $565,000 while the townhouse prices are set at $359,000. The prices are well below those in surrounding Old Town, where residential real estate regularly reaches past $1 million."

"Scott Loomis, of the Mountainlands Community Housing Trust, said a household earning the median income of $109,800 annually for a household of four in Summit County can afford to purchase an approximately $500,000 house, a figure that is significantly below the typical real estate sale. 'There’s no product for anybody earning less than a couple hundred thousand dollars a year,' he said about the real estate market in Park City and surrounding Summit County."

From Vail Daily in Colorado. "In simplest terms, the Missing Middle is comprised of people who make too much money to qualify for housing assistance programs and too little money to purchase homes on the free market. In an area such as Eagle County, that’s a big group. 'You have different segments of the market competing for the same product,' said Community Builders Executive Director Clark Anderson. 'One segment is the high-end, luxury market and it’s really hard for everyone else to compete. A lot the housing stock goes to the high-end buyer.'"

"In 1993, Harry brought a family home in Singletree. He and his wife are now empty nesters and they want to downsize. They put their home on the market and, naturally, they want to make as much money as possible in the deal to aid with their retirement. 'Now that home is purchased by someone who is going to take it into the luxury market,' Anderson said. 'That’s how you have the working people market competing with the luxury market every day. And as long as we allow these two parts of the community to compete against one another, the luxury market is always going to win.'"

The Telegram in Massachusetts. "High home prices and low inventory have kept home ownership rates in Worcester and Massachusetts on a steady decline. But a recently enhanced MassHousing program seeks to change that by providing low-interest loans - including money for the down payment - for low- to moderate-income residents who may have thought they were shut out of that American dream."

"Recent enhancements to the program include raising the annual household income eligibility for purchases in Boston and Gateway Cities, including Worcester (up to $128,655); and expanding eligible property types to two-, three- and four-family homes; whereas only single-family and condominium units were originally allowed. The DPA loans also will now cover up to $15,000, or 5% of the purchase price for the down payment, up from the previous limit of $12,000 or 3%. The interest rate for that second loan is 2% fixed for 15 years."

"Fairway Independent Mortgage Corp., with local offices in Holden and Auburn, is MassHousing’s top lender in Central Massachusetts. David Frechette, senior loan officer in the Holden office, said the program 'enables a significant number of additional borrowers who previously thought they would be shut out of the housing market to now attain home ownership.'"

"'The zero-down option is really the big feature to it,' he said, before giving an example. He said if someone was buying a house for $200,000, they would have a $10,000 second mortgage available to them to use as the down payment. The second mortgage would result in a monthly payment of $64.35. Instead of coming up with a 5% down payment, the buyer would pay $64.35 a month toward that, and have a separate payment for the first mortgage."

"'The bottom line is this allows someone with sufficient credit and (who) has no or very little savings to get in and buy a home that they previously couldn’t qualify for,' Frechette said. 'The program recognizes that a lot of people can live week-to-week, pay their bills and do fine, but they can’t accumulate the savings. They consider this shortfall as their barrier to home ownership. This program eliminates that barrier.'"

"The buyer’s income and FICO credit score are the most important criteria. The FICO score can be as low as 640, depending on the MassHousing program."

"A recent housing and economic study commissioned by the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce revealed that Worcester County leads the state in foreclosure sales. In 2015 and 2016, 25 percent of all foreclosure sales in the state occurred in the county. The city of Worcester had 2,325 foreclosure sales between 2008 and 2018."

"Mounzer Aylouche, MassHousing’s vice president of Homeownership programs said MassHousing has its own mortgage insurance program, which helps to defer delinquency and ultimately the foreclosure of the home. The program called, MIPlus, is a benefit included as part of the loan agreement. Should a borrower lose their job during the first ten years of the loan, MassHousing pays up to six months of the principal and interest, or up to $2,000 a month for a total of $12,000. The six-month limit does not have to be consecutive. An unemployment filing is required. The borrower is still responsible for paying taxes and insurance."

"'By covering the principal and interest, we’re relieving the worry of, ‘How am I going to find the money to pay MassHousing?’ This allows more room to breathe and figure out where the next job is,' said Aylouche. 'This is deferring delinquency, the foreclosure and losing the home.'"

"The good economy of Worcester attracts people from the valuation aspect. If they buy today and the economy is still booming in five to six years, there is a greater chance the value of the home will be much higher. 'Hence, the wealth-building effect of homeownership,' Aylouche added."