From our friends at REALTOR.Com
Despite high unemployment and general concerns of too much existing inventory, new-home construction appears to be rising.

According to Friday’s report from the U.S. Commerce Department, construction of new homes rose 3.6 percent in June compared to May. Building permits climbed 8.7 percent, and single-family home starts jumped 14.4 percent to 470,000, after rising 5.9 percent in May.

In real numbers, ground was broken for an estimated 58,300 houses nationwide in June, and an estimated 58,400 building permits were issued.

Here’s a look at housing starts in different U.S. regions:
Midwest: up 33.3 percent
Northeast: up 28.6 percent
South: down 1.4 percent
West: down 14.8 percent

Source: The Wall Street Journal, Jeff Bater (06/17/2009)
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From our friends at REALTOR.Com
Bank attitudes toward risky lending is making it very difficult for the self-employed, even those with high incomes, to secure mortgages.

No-doc loans are particularly hard to get, locking out people whose incomes are derived from investments or who are able to tax-shelter significant dollars.
The California Mortgage Bankers Association spokesman Dustin Hobbs says the industry understands that banning most alternative financing isn’t the long-term answer. (more…)

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From our friends at REAL Trends
Zillow and Trulia traffic grow in first half 2009 amid real estate market uncertainty, homeowners, buyers and sellers turning to Zillow® in record numbers for research and advice. An average of 8.3 million unique users visited Zillow each month during this period, which is an increase of 67 percent year-over-year. In addition, the site had some 35 percent more for-sale listings in the first half of 2009 versus a year earlier, as the result of more listings feed partnerships with brokerages and Multiple Listings Services. (more…)

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From our friends at Realtor.com
Mortgage applications bounced back last week after nearly a month in the doldrums when the number of applications fell to a seven-month low.

The market index compiled by the Mortgage Bankers Association rose 6.6 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis to 548.2 points from 514.4 points the previous week. (more…)

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From our friends at Realtor.com The Federal Housing Administration is tightening its review of mortgage professionals that are allowed to originate loans.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development requires brokers who originate FHA loans to obtain approval through the agency. People convicted of making fraudulent loans will be barred from the program. Previously, companies were penalized, but individual employees were not.

Richard L. Tracy Jr., a board member of the Connecticut Society of Mortgage Brokers and an FHA-approved lender, says the changes “will go a long way toward getting out the marginal players.”

Source: The New York Times, Bob Tedeschi (06/05/2009)

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From our friends at Realtor.com
While real estate and other industries remained weak in all 12 of the Federal Reserve districts, there is reason for optimism in several areas, according to the Federal Reserve, which released its periodic “Beige Book” report of economic activity on Wednesday.

In Boston, Fed contacts reported “early signs of improvement” in the residential real estate sector, and the news was equally good in New York where the book said banks are reporting “the most widespread rise in demand for residential mortgages in more than seven years.” (more…)

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From our friends at Real Trends
Initial construction of U.S. homes unexpectedly surged in February, according to a government report released Tuesday. Housing starts rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 583,000 last month, up 22% from a revised 477,000 in January, according to the Commerce Department. Economists were expecting housing starts to decline to 450,000, according to consensus estimates compiled by Briefing.com.

Applications for building permits, considered a reliable sign of future construction activity, rose 3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 547,000 last month. Economists were expecting permits to fall to 500,000.

Source: CNNMoney.com

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From our friends at Real Trends, Inc.
Two new initiatives from Fannie Mae Home Affordable Refinance and Home Affordable Modification-are now available to its servicers and borrowers as part of the Obama Administration’s “Making Home Affordable” program.

The two initiatives hope to significantly expand the numbers of borrowers who can refinance or modify their mortgages to a payment that is affordable now and into the future. (more…)

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A lousy week on Wall Street didn’t have much effect on mortgage rates, according to Bankrate.com. Stock prices fell to 12-year lows. Normally, a giant slide on stock prices is met by a plunge in mortgage rates-not this time.

The benchmark 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage was unchanged, at 5.41 percent, according to the Bankrate.com national survey of large lenders.

Source: Bankrate.com

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From our friends at Realtor.com
As the housing downturn wears on, some cities are stabilizing and some
aren’t.

In Las Vegas, the weakest market in the country, prices continue to drop.

“I don’t know what those guys were drinking when they thought all this building made sense. If it does work out soon, then there’s some force out there in the universe that I’m not aware of,” Steve Cesinger, chief financial officer at Dewberry Capital, an Atlanta-based real estate investment firm. (more…)

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