A weekend topic starting with NBC DFW. "Invitation Homes CEO Dallas Tanner told CNBC he believes the U.S. housing market is 'extremely healthy' right now. 'I would expect that home prices stay relatively stable, if not continue to grow in value for the homeowners in the country,' Tanner said, downplaying concerns that the sharp rise in prices during the Covid pandemic is creating bubble-like conditions. Demographic trends, in particular, are powerful right now, he said. 'You have this wave of millennials coming our way,' with tens of millions of people looking for housing, Tanner said. 'So, as you start to think about, would we see a decrease in either home purchasing or home leasing? We just don't see it.'"

"In an interview, Tanner said the supply-and-demand dynamics that have contributed to the feverish market conditions are unlikely to 'change dramatically overnight.' That fact, combined with tighter mortgage lending standards instituted after the 2008 crash, lead Tanner to believe the housing market is in solid shape."

The Mortgage Reports. "Can I buy a house without a big down payment? Absolutely, says Ivan Simental, mortgage advisor. Ivan discussed zero down and low-down-payment home loan programs. If you’re lucky enough to score a home in today’s wild market, here’s what you need to know about your options for putting little or no money down. Down payment assistance can be a great option for people looking to lower their upfront costs. If you qualify for a low- or zero-down loan and assistance with your upfront fees, you could end up paying very little out of pocket."

"Ivan told the story of someone he knew who utilized the 4% DPA option and had closing costs covered by the seller. They were able to get into a house for around $1,200 out of pocket. 'It was ridiculously low, which is awesome,' Ivan said."

From Fox 13 in Utah. "Data from the National Association of Realtors shows that across the state of Utah, housing prices have spiked. In the past the year, home prices in Salt Lake County have increased 31 percent. Some Utah residents say that in trying to buy a home, they're having trouble getting their foot in the door. 'You see builders now hesitant to ramp up their building because they're worried about the next bubble, the next recession. We just have such a demand with not enough building and not enough inventory,' said Matt Ulrich, the president of the Salt Lake Board of Realtors."

"'It's kind of scary to go and buy a house right now, because you don't know if the market will keep going up, and then just simply the money of it,' said Utah resident Caden Butterfield. As far as the future goes, realtors say at this rate, housing prices are going to continue to go up 5-10 percent each year."

From KXLY in Idaho. "Coeur d’Alene is the hottest housing market in the nation, according to the Wall Street Journal. However, with rising home prices and crowds of people moving from out of state, locals are having a difficult time getting a winning bid on a home. While some sellers told home buyer Mackenzie Kranzler they wanted to sell to local people, she says that’s not what happened when offers started to pour in. 'It really showed peoples greed for money in this market. That wasn’t the case at all, you couldn’t find anyone who was truly selling for those reasons,' said Kranzler."

From DS News. "While competition remains fierce and prices are still soaring, some indicators measured in a new Redfin study suggest the sizzling sellers' market is cooling. 'Many measures of the housing market, such as pending home sales, mortgage applications, and touring activity, showed some improvement this past week following the Memorial Day slump, but don't call it a comeback,' said Redfin Lead Economist Taylor Marr. 'Seasonally adjusted homebuyer demand is unlikely to rebound to the levels we saw earlier in the spring.'"

"Real estate agents on the ground back up Marr's observations. 'Offers no longer pour in the day a home hits the market,' said Phoenix agent John Biddle. 'It has become more common for offers to come in at least a few days after a home is listed for sale. If this were three years ago, we'd marvel at how fast the market was, but it's a clear slowdown from a few weeks ago. Now that things are opening up again and the summer is almost here, people have other priorities, like going on vacation. Plus, many homebuyers are frustrated and tired of competing, so they've stepped back—for now at least.'"

From Bloomberg. "Prospective home sellers who sat tight as U.S. prices climbed higher and faster than ever during the pandemic are finally emerging to cash out, a step toward easing a dire shortage in the frenzied housing market. The number of U.S. homes for sale climbed 6.7% in early June from the same weekly period in May, according to Haus, an investment platform for homebuyers. That was the biggest increase since Covid-19 lockdowns took hold last year. Listings rose in 54 of the 100 metropolitan areas measured, including the regions around Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Detroit, Denver and Seattle."

"'Sellers are saying, ‘it’s time, let’s make the money,’ said Julie Welter, an agent with EXP Realty in Pittsburgh, which had the biggest supply increase in Haus’s data."

"'People who were thinking about selling in two or three years may have accelerated their plans,' said Ralph McLaughlin, chief economist at Haus. 'They’re selling now to realize the 20% equity they’ve gained in the past year.'"

"Shauna Pendleton, a Redfin agent in Boise, Idaho, said 35 sellers have talked to her this year about listing properties. That’s about twice as many as in the same time in 2020, she said. The area has seen some of the fastest price growth in the country, with home values up 42% in early June from a year earlier, according to Redfin. 'These are mostly retirees,' Pendleton said of her new seller clients."

"McLaughlin said he expects U.S. home-price growth to slow to less than 10% by the end of the year. Demand may also cool as buyers are priced out, especially if borrowing costs start to rise, he said. Federal Reserve officials indicated this week that they expect two interest-rate increases by the end of 2023 -- sooner than many thought."

"'The same force leading to new supply may be the same force that reduces the ability of homebuyers to keep interested in buying the home,' McLaughlin said. 'That’s mainly rising prices.'"

From Better Dwelling in Canada. "Prices just outside of frothy Canadian real estate markets are growing much faster than in the city. That’s typical of a bubble, and it’s called 'housing bubble contagion.' In a paper titled Housing Bubble Contagion From City Centre To Suburbs, three Taiwan-based researchers argue bubbles spread outwards. Bubbles force investors and developers to look for 'deals' outside of the city, sending prices soaring. The result is a larger bubble, with suburban prices being much more frothy. Looking at Canadian real estate data, that’s exactly what’s happening in Canada."

"Not unlike a virus, the host is infecting those with close contact. The issue is passed from person to person, but instead of getting sick, they think a teardown bungalow is worth two million. It actually makes a lot of sense, considering the psychology of a bubble. Prof Jean-Paul Rodrigue infamously broke down the bubble mindset into four phases: stealth, when smart money begins to accumulate a position, and place big bets; awareness, where institutional investors start to see opportunity; the mania, when prices start to really take off after the public jumps in, and smart money begins to rotate out; and the blow off, where people are terrified to touch the asset, after watching everyone lose a whack of money in the decision."

"The bubble contagion theory puts a unique spin on real estate bubbles. Unlike a stock, the public can’t just buy a few shares for further exposure to the market. Instead, they usually need to buy a whole home, or pool with other investors. When prices rise to, oh, I don’t know, the point where only 5% of the population can buy, those that want to speculate, can’t."

"The result is aspiring investors, and the real estate developers who love them, look to the burbs. The researchers observed bubble behavior moving from the City Centre of New Taipei to the suburbs. An influx of money tends to produce an even bigger bubble than had been contained to just the city. The suburban bubble often sees a bigger gap between the price and fundamdentals."

"Canadian real estate is in a bubble, and that’s not just my opinion — it’s the opinion of finance authorities. Not professionals, authorities. The US Federal Reserve has Canadian real estate in its 19th consecutive bubble quarter. Bank of Canada (BoC) also created a similar model, but said bubbles were limited to Toronto, Hamilton, and Montreal."

"The IMF also estimates some cities need big drops to reach fundamentals: Toronto (28%), Vancouver (15%), and Hamilton (29.6%). So let’s skip the debate, and accept that the bubble is as real as government incompetence."

"BoC research also shows the housing bubble contagion is already spreading. They just won’t acknowledge it. They found Toronto homes located within one kilometer of the city center saw annual price growth fall 1.9% in the fourth quarter of 2020. Once you get 30km out, double-digit annual price growth becomes normal. When you hit 64 km, prices were making 19% annual growth. Toronto now has banks warning, make sure you really want that suburban property, because you may be stuck with it."

"The pandemic changed buying habits though, so this time it’s different — right? Maybe, but maybe not. The researchers said, '… abnormal demand shock qualifies as a bubble.' In other words, it doesn’t matter if people all of a sudden really, really want to buy a home because of low rates. An increase in price that’s abrupt and not ground in a change in local market fundamentals isn’t a rational price movement. Ditto with, 'I had to pay 20% over ask because 72 people also bid.' It’s not a bubble if one person does it. It’s a bubble if everyone thinks what that person did was normal."

"Not unlike any other contagion, nipping a bubble in the bud, as quickly as possible is the best solution. The researchers found if a city becomes exuberant, suppressing market activity limits the damage. In the event it spreads to the suburbs, it becomes more problematic. Canada recently loosened measures, lowered mortgage rates beyond market rates using QE, expanded the money supply rapidly, and is providing construction loans. If Canada has any real estate bubbles, it’s literally doing the exact opposite of what it should be doing to prevent a financial crisis."