The existing-home sales stats for 2011 are out today; here are Diana’s comments from cnbc:
Home sales rose in December to the highest pace in nearly a year. The gain coincides with other signs that show the troubled housing market improved at the end of last year. Still, sales remain depressed and ended 2011 well below healthy levels.
The National Association of Realtors said Friday that sales increased 5 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.61 million, the best level since January 2011 and the third straight monthly increase.
For the year, sales totaled only 4.26 million. While that’s up from 4.19 million the previous year, it’s below the 6 million that economists equate with healthy housing markets.
Sales are increasing at a time when the market is flashing other positive signs. Mortgage rates are at record-low levels. Homebuilders have grown slightly less pessimistic because more people are saying they might be open to buying a home this year. And home construction picked up in the final quarter of last year.
The median sales price rose 2.3 percent to $164,500 in December.
The glut of unsold homes declined to 2.38 million homes. At last month’s sales pace, it would take a nearly 7 months to clear those homes. Analysts say a healthy supply can be cleared in about six months.
Once last year she mentioned that we should keep our focus on local market activity – let’s do that!
Detached-Home Sales and Pricing:
| Area | 2010 Sales | 2011 Sales | Diff | 2010 $/sf | 2011 $/sf | Diff |
| SD Co. | ||||||
| NSDCC |
For the comparison by zip code, click here.
https://www.bubbleinfo.com/2012/01/03/north-san-diego-sales-2011/
Everybody is talking principal reductions…
“This economic crisis is about way more than economics,” Clinton said. “It has gone to the core of people’s sense of who they are, what they are worth and how they get through life with meaning.”
Clinton’s plan for resolving the current crisis is to immediately lower principal and interest rates for underwater borrowers to match current valuations and market rates. In exchange, the homeowner would agree to pay the bank a portion of the money earned from eventually selling the home in a recovered market.
“The lender would, in effect, invest in the home so the banks would not have a bad debt on their books,” Clinton said. “The harsh way to do it is to foreclose on everyone now and turn everyone into renters — I hate that way.”
Clinton threw in a dash of history for some perspective: over the past 500 years, it’s typically taken five to ten years for countries to recover from a financial disaster, he said. It’s been closer to ten years over the past two centuries for crises related to privately held mortgage debt, he said.
Clinton urged financial companies to clean up the mortgage mess as quickly as possible and then get back to lending.
“If you want America to return to a full-employment economy, you have to accelerate the resolution of the mortgage crisis,” he said.
Jim – My stocks are way down from the peak when I bought on heavy margin. Thus, I’d like the government to step in an reduce my margin debt to the value of the stocks. I will gladly share future appreciation with them 50/50.
Thanks in advance for bailing me out…again.
Sincerely,
Jim Cramer
A reader sent this in:
Cardiff short sale gets fully approved and is just about to close escrow when the bank sells it at the courthouse steps for $100k more than the short sale buyer was paying.
Bank is now trying to cancel the ss and maintain the deal at the steps. The craziness continues at the steps with investors willing to bet on higher prices on the back end than the most recent, relevant comps suggest is attainable.
#3 above is scary.
#3 is actually pretty interesting. It’s well know that, as a practical matter, buyers can get out of a sale whenever thay want right up to closing time. If sellers can as well, why wouldn’t a bank/servicer throw a property on the court house steps near closing time just see if they could do better?
Jim @1,
Dear JtR and former President Clinton,
My home is currently worth $200+K less than it was at the peak. Unfortunately I did not do a cash out refi or a HELOC because I want to pay my house off someday. Would it be possible for the bank to loan me the $200+K I didn’t foolishly borrow back then and let me have the same deal as you’re testing out for the deadbeats? Thanks in advance, I’ll be anxiously waiting by the mailbox for my check.
Jeebus, they just keep rewarding bad behavior and wondering why more and more people are defaulting. Crazy. 😆