The Housing Bubble Blog

A report from the New York Post. "Blackstone Group’s transfer of a $308 million loan on 1740 Broadway to a special servicer had real-estate jaws dropping on Wednesday. A knowledgeable source said of the move, 'They overpaid for the building by at least $100 million and the loan terms left them no...

A report from the Nevada Current. "The Federal Reserve’s bump in its benchmark rate brings it to the .25% to .50% range, after historic pandemic-era lows. As a result, the market may be stabilizing, at least in some places. The median price of a home in Reno fell by almost 2.5 percent from January...

A report from the Ledger in Florida. "Thomas Gebregergis had $100,000 in cash and was looking to secure a spacious second home. He turned to the foreclosure market and offered $28,100 on what he thought would be a dream property for him and his family. Instead, he ended up with a nightmare: a home...

A report from Mortgage Grader. "Why is Freddie Mac throwing out automated appraisals for certain refinances that have seemingly worked well for five years? In June 2017, Freddie introduced refinance appraisal waivers on eligible properties, expanding the program to purchase loans by September of...

A report from Yahoo Money. "This week's more than quarter-point jump in mortgage rates is sending a dire message to homebuyers and owners: Time is running out. 'The short answer is it’s painful, I won’t lie. Rates have been escalating every single day for basically the last 45 days,' Scott Sheldon,...

A weekend topic starting with Fox 43 in Maryland. "The Federal Reserve raised interest rates on Wednesday for the first time since 2018. 'Just get into the house without paying any extra fees or points if you have to, just get in with the least amount of cash out of pocket as possible as far as...

It's Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. "National Association of REALTORS Chief Economist Lawrence Yun: 'Oh, well, the refinancing chance may be over because rates will only go higher from this point. The mortgage rates were essentially at 3% last year. It's already at 4% or slightly...

A report from the Sylva Herald in North Carolina. "At the start of the new year home sales across the 13-county Asheville region continued to buck trends, as 906 homes sold, representing an increase of 2.5 percent over sales in January 2021. However, month-over-month sales compared to December’s...

A report from the Guardian. "Home ownership was initially a pandemic silver lining for Kay Kingsman. After a whirlwind month of house hunting, she made an offer on a Portland townhome in late July; it was only the second property she saw in person. A week later, Kingsman closed the deal and paid...

A report from Deseret News. "The Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates this week — likely by 0.25% — for the first time in three years. As a result, mortgage rates will rise, too. 'It’s bad,' said Dejan Eskic, senior research fellow at the University of Utah who specializes in housing...

A report from Nerd Wallet. "On average, list prices fell 1% from the third quarter to the fourth, among the largest metro areas. However, some markets saw prices drop by double digits. Compared with the last quarter of 2020, prices fell double digits in 11 metro areas, with Detroit (-17%),...

A report from CBS 8 in California. "Trisha Cortez, 35, said she started her search for her first home with her partner back in 2021. They needed to move from the North Park property they had been renting for 10 years because their landlord was doing renovations. '[We submitted] 33 offers before we...

A weekend topic starting with Fox. "Since mortgage rates will continue to rise but are not expected to increase considerably, experts suggest it may be worth it to wait until there is more supply or choices available later in the year or next. Yet, be aware, waiting longer also equates to higher...

It's Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. "Freddie Mac's weekly mortgage rate survey rate is standby for multiple news organizations to print their once-a-week mortgage rate color. The bigger problem is that Freddie's survey headline often gives the wrong impression about where rates are and...

A report from Socket Site in California. "The sale of 765 Market Street#30C has now quietly closed escrow with a contract price of $1.2 million, down 29.4 percent from its 2017 value and an even greater loss when accounting for the cost of the remodeling." The New York Post. "A 25-foot-wide mansion...

A report from Jackson Hole News and Guide. "Looking to buy a house, Harry Richmond found one three or so hours away from San Francisco where he lives and works. But, just as the 33-year-old pharmaceutical industry employee was getting ready to buy in Truckee, a town of roughly 16,500 just a few...

A report from WGHP on North Carolina. "Investment firms are scooping up more and more homes for sale in the Triad. Diane Spivack, a resident of Brightwood Farm, started asking herself who her neighbors were when she saw some people on her street not maintaining their homes or abiding by the HOA...

A report from Bankrate. "Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are rolling out new rules covering condo loans - and critics say the stricter reviews are causing condo sales to fall apart, even in buildings with no structural issues. Because most new mortgages are packaged and sold by these agencies, lenders...

A weekend topic starting with the Tribune in California. "Convicted fraudster and former Atascadero Citizen of the Year Kelly Gearhart was released from federal prison Wednesday. Gearhart, a former real estate developer in San Luis Obispo County, pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud and one...

A weekend topic starting with Yahoo Finance. "The Federal Reserve’s top figure said Thursday that the central bank should have acted sooner to pull back on its pandemic-era stimulus and get ahead of rising inflation. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell told the Senate Banking Committee that with prices...