10% Increase the Last Year? Not According to Agents According to the latest Case-Shiller Home Price Index (“Case-Shiller”), the U.S. housing market is up about 10% the last year. However, if you ask in-the-trenches Realtors (like me), they’ll tell you the real number is lower — something like up 5%. Who’s right? Put is this way: it...Read More
Old Wine in New Bottles Thanks to a rising housing market, there are now far fewer underwater homeowners. However, they’ve hardly disappeared. In fact, something like 20% of all homeowners with a mortgage — about 5 million people nationally — still owe more on their homes than their home is worth (that’s down from closer to...Read More
Expired: Mortgage Debt Relief Act Metaphorically speaking, if someone takes their foot off your throat . . . are you better off? I suppose. But, I wouldn’t say that you’re well off — just that your pain has been relieved.* What’s the distinction? Up until last year (2012 in Minnesota), homeowners whose mortgage was reduced in...Read More
The Role of the BPO (“Broker Price Opinion”) When someone owes $250k on a home currently worth $200k, arguably they no longer own the home . . . their bank does (or, at the very least, the bank calls the shots). So, it would seem smart to find out what the bank is willing to sell...Read More
“You Mean, the Bank Can RAISE The Price After the Seller Has Signed the Purchase Agreement?!?” (Yup, That’s What I Mean) After a couple HUGE years for short sales, they’re now receding as a factor in today’s housing market. According to City Lakes’ resident short sale expert, Jim Kantorowicz, there are two reasons for that:...Read More
Addicted to (Spoiled By?) Ultra-Low Interest Rates Two years ago, when the shortage of housing inventory in the Twin Cities first became apparent, the leading theory was that underwater homeowners literally couldn’t afford to sell.* Now that local housing prices have rebounded significantly, that theory . . . umm, holds less water. With current Twin Cities housing inventory the...Read More