May House Prices Show Highest Increase Since 2006
House prices climbed 6.8% in May 2010 from last year, the largest yearly increase since July 2006, according to a report from real estate data provider Clear Capital.
In June 2009, Clear Capital reported a 19.3% drop in May house prices, a “far cry” from the increase shown in this report a year later, said Alex Villacorta, senior statistician at Clear Capital. The rolling quarter-over-quarter number, which measures houses prices against those three months ago showed a 1.8% decline, an improvement from the 5% drop in April.
“We continue to see sustained price growth throughout much of the country with yearly price gains reflecting the housing recovery off of last year’s lows,” Villacorta said. “The expiration of the tax credit at the end of April has certainly contributed to the growth of prices we are observing and as more sales close before the June 30 deadline we expect that markets across the country will continue to see strengthening of prices.”
The amount of REO properties on the market seems to be dropping, too, according to Clear Capital. The national REO saturation rate dropped to 27.8%, down from 41.7% last year.
“This dramatic shift in price trends reflects the unprecedented volatility over the last couple of years and the delicate state of local real estate markets around the country,” Villacorta said.
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Median Home Prices Up In 60% of Cities in 1st Quarter
WASHINGTON (AP) — Home prices rose in nearly 60% of U.S. cities in the first quarter of this year, the National Association of Realtors says. The median sales price for previously occupied homes rose in 91 out of 152 metropolitan areas tracked in the January-March quarter versus a year ago. There were double-digit price increases in 29 cities.
CHART: Median sales price by metro area
That’s a sharp improvement from the fourth quarter of last year, when prices rose in about 40% of cities. The national median price was $166,100, or 0.7% below the first quarter of last year.
Sales of foreclosures and other distressed properties made up 36% of all sales in the first quarter.
The largest percentage price increase was in Saginaw, Mich., where the median price doubled to nearly $61,000. Prices in Akron, Ohio were up 95% to about $95,000. Prices in Cleveland were up 54% to $106,400.
The largest price decline was in Orlando, where they dropped 15% to nearly $132,000. Prices in Ocala, Fla., fell 14.5% to a median of nearly $93,000. Prices in Cumberland, Md., fell 14.4% to $98,300.
Breaking News regarding FHA…
Measure to help bring stability to home values and accelerate sale of vacant properties
“As a result of the tightened credit market, FHA-insured mortgage financing is often the only means of financing available to potential homebuyers,” said Donovan. “FHA has an unprecedented opportunity to fulfill its mission by helping many homebuyers find affordable housing while contributing to neighborhood stabilization.”
With certain exceptions, FHA currently prohibits insuring a mortgage on a home owned by the seller for less than 90 days. This temporary waiver will give FHA borrowers access to a broader array of recently foreclosed properties.
“This change in policy is temporary and will have very strict conditions and guidelines to assure that predatory practices are not allowed,” Donovan said.
In today’s market, FHA research finds that acquiring, rehabilitating and the reselling these properties to prospective homeowners often takes less than 90 days. Prohibiting the use of FHA mortgage insurance for a subsequent resale within 90 days of acquisition adversely impacts the willingness of sellers to allow contracts from potential FHA buyers because they must consider holding costs and the risk of vandalism associated with allowing a property to sit vacant over a 90-day period of time.
The policy change will permit buyers to use FHA-insured financing to purchase HUD-owned properties, bank-owned properties, or properties resold through private sales. This will allow homes to resell as quickly as possible, helping to stabilize real estate prices and to revitalize neighborhoods and communities.
“FHA borrowers, because of the restrictions we are now lifting, have often been shut out from buying affordable properties,” said FHA Commissioner David H. Stevens. “This action will enable our borrowers, especially first-time buyers, to take advantage of this opportunity.”
The waiver will take effect on February 1, 2010 and is effective for one year, unless otherwise extended or withdrawn by the FHA Commissioner. To protect FHA borrowers against predatory practices of “flipping” where properties are quickly resold at inflated prices to unsuspecting borrowers, this waiver is limited to those sales meeting the following general conditions:
- All transactions must be arms-length, with no identity of interest between the buyer and seller or other parties participating in the sales transaction.
- In cases in which the sales price of the property is 20 percent or more above the seller’s acquisition cost, the waiver will only apply if the lender meets specific conditions.
- The waiver is limited to forward mortgages, and does not apply to the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) for purchase program.
Specific conditions and other details of this new temporary policy are in the text of the waiver, available on HUD’s website.
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