Posts Tagged ‘Existing Home Sales’
Home Sales Fall on Credit, Cancellations, Confidence
July's existing home sales came in well below expectations. While analysts called for an increase, based on several months of rising pending home sales (contracts signed), they did not give enough weight to the three biggest issues plaguing the market, starting with tough credit conditions.
Credit Rules the Housing Market
Existing home sales were basically flat in April, down close to one percent month to month and down nearly 13 percent year over year, but you have to remember last year we were heavily under the influence of the home buyer tax credit. Now we are heavily under the influence of the mortgage market, or lack thereof.
Why Housing Is Going Through a Double Dip
The sales pace of newly built homes is now at the lowest on record. Sales dropped nearly 17 percent in February after a big drop in January. Put that on top of the nearly 10 percent February drop in existing home sales reported earlier this week and the incredibly low level of mortgage purchase applications, and you get a clear case for a double dip in housing.
Market Scoffs at Pitiful Home Sales
Call me crazy, but I thought a near 10 percent monthly drop in existing home sales might affect the markets today. If not the sales, then maybe the 5.2 percent annual price drop, or the rise in inventories to an 8.6 month supply. Nope. Apparently that's not bad news to financials today.
Home Builders May Be Faring Better Than We Think
Last week's revelation that realtors had been overestimating the number of existing home sales in 2010 was certainly a bombshell to those of us who cover housing, but it didn't really affect investors. But here's a new one that could affect how you stock players trade.
Realtors Seek Data Help
It wasn't at all what I expected. With accusations over the weekend by various journalists that the Realtors have been overestimating existing home sales numbers, I was ready for a full-court PR press at this morning's monthly sales report lockup. Not so much.
Home Sales Rally Amid Mortgage Questions
Existing home sales took a huge and unexpected jump up in December. Not only was the seasonally adjusted monthly increase up over 12 percent, but the unadjusted number was even higher. The question of course now is, given that inventories always rise this time of year, can this sales surge be sustained?
Time to Dip a Toe in Housing?
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: In housing, prices lag sales, on the way up and on the way down. Recently we've been getting a lot of bullish news on home sales, with both pending and existing home sales up toward the end of the year and expectations that December will continue that trend. So why are prices down?
Existing Home Sales: Read Between the Numbers
Noise. There's an awful lot of it in today's report on September existing home sales from the National Association of Realtors. Even the markets could hear the noise, as they didn't react all that much to the 10 percent jump in sales that completely beat expectations.
Florida’s existing condo sales rise in July
Sales of existing condominiums in Florida rose 11 percent in July, with a total of 5,557 condos sold statewide compared to 4,991 units sold in July 2009, according to the latest housing data released by Florida Realtors®. Eleven of Florida’s metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) reported higher existing condo sales in July, according to Florida Realtors. The statewide existing condo median sales price last month was $87,200; in July 2009 it was $108,500 for a 20 percent decrease. The national median existing condo price was $181,300 in June, according to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR). Meanwhile, in the year-to-year comparison for existing home sales, a total of 13,589 single-family existing homes sold statewide last month compared to 15,762 homes sold in July 2009 for a decrease of 14 percent. Florida’s median existing-home sales price in July was $138,000; a year earlier, it was $147,600 for a decrease of 7 percent. The median is the midpoint; half the homes sold for more, half for less. “The homebuyer tax credit expiration added a double dip to what has already been a harrowing ride in the Florida housing market,” said Dr. Sean Snaith, director for the University of Central Florida’s Institute for Economic Competitiveness. “As we move past this second dip, which is evident in the July data, the continued recovery of the state’s housing market will be contingent upon the improvement of the fundamental underpinnings of the housing sector. “A healthy housing market depends upon a healthy Florida economy, and in particular, an improving labor market,” Snaith added. “Job growth and a declining unemployment rate will help sales continue to grow while at the same time reducing the number of foreclosures in Florida.” 2010 Florida Realtors President Wendell Davis, a broker with Watson Realty Corp. in Jacksonville, noted that the Gulf oil spill, along with uncertainty over its impact, has affected the state’s housing market. “Along with many local businesses in the Florida Panhandle and in other Gulf Coast states, real estate has experienced significant economic harm following the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig explosion and oil spill,” Davis said. “The announcement that a special allocation from the BP Oil Spill Fund is now available to help the claims of real estate professionals’ – Realtors and licensees – over loss of income or sales due to the Gulf oil spill is a positive action that will help bolster the state’s fragile economy recovery.” The national median sales price for existing single-family homes in June 2010 was $184,200, up 1.3 percent from a year earlier, according to NAR. In Massachusetts, the statewide median resales price was $331,150 in June; in California, it was $311,950; in Maryland, it was $265,268; and in New York, it was $220,750. More jobs continue to be key to the housing sector’s recovery, according to NAR’s latest industry outlook. “There could be a couple of additional months of slow home-sales activity before picking up later in the year, provided the job market continues to improve,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. The interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.56 percent in July, down from the 5.22 percent averaged in July 2009, according to Freddie Mac. Florida Realtors’ sales figures reflect closings, which typically occur 30 to 90 days after sales contracts are written.
