Quite a bit has been written about the reactionary lending policies that private mortgage originators began following after the market collapse in 2008, and the common narrative has been that such credit restrictions negatively impact housing. We cover lending

Membership in the National Association of Realtors (NAR) declined for the third straight month in December, closing out a 2011 that marks the fifth straight year of annual declines for the influential association. According to the latest data from

The President’s State of the Union speech is set for tonight, and among the many economic, political and social issues he is sure to address, many are speculating if one of the more lingering debates in housing will finally

Housing inventories finished 2011 down by 22.3 percent, with 1.89 million homes on the market at the end of December, the lowest inventory in the last four years. Though low inventories would appear to be a good sign for

It’s no mystery that home prices are low. CoreLogic’s latest Home Price Index fell from October to November, and prices have fallen by an average of 32.8 percent from their 2006 peak. What has not followed suit, though, are

It appears Realtors were a very good bunch this year, as Santa delivered some promising existing-home sales data in December. Sales for existing-homes rose by 5 percent from November to December, reaching an adjusted annual rate of 4.61 million.

Freddie Mac released 2012’s first U.S. Economic and Housing Market Outlook this week, and amidst analysis of the job market and consumer confidence, the GSE’s Chief Economist, Frank Nothaft, painted a nuanced portrait of housing, one that, despite some tough

Ever since the Federal Reserve outlined a potential bulk REO sales program, and especially after it was announced early last week that the government was in negotiations with private property management firms for such transactions, speculation has abounded on

The latest Residential Price Index (RPI) from research firm FNC was released yesterday for the month of November, and as expected, it reported that home prices are still in a sensitive spot with foreclosures and seriously delinquent mortgages still relatively common

The latest residential construction statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development for December 2011 show privately-owned housing starts posting a big year-over-year increase, rising by nearly 25 percent from December 2010 at an

After reaching positive territory for the first time in three months in November, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI), one of the leading economic indicators of construction activity, has now scored two straight months of positive numbers, according to the most recent

The National Association of Home Builder’s Housing Market Index (HMI) rose four points in January to 25, the fourth consecutive month of gains and the highest level for the index in more than four years. Bob Nielsen, the chairman

Mortgage applications and refinancings exploded with activity last week, with the financial options increasing by 23.1 percent and 26.4 percent from the week before, respectively, according to the latest data from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). Refinancings continued to

We reported last week on rumors that the government is planning a bulk sale program for its REO properties, a long-awaited initiative that would unload the roughly 250,000 properties in several large-scale fire sales with investors, who would maintain the properties

The appraisal process is one that has received continuous coverage in media outlets, ours included, namely in how appraisals often result in lower home values than the deals brokered by agents – and which often cancels the sale. A

A new report from Fannie Mae predicts optimistic home sales data for 2012,with forecasts projecting in new home sales a rise of 10.4 percent and for existing-home sales an increase of 3.5 percent, or, 4.74 million units, for the