Real Estate Industry Heating Up | RISMedia

My wife and I recently attended our once-a-month cruise club cocktail hour, in which we are two of the only working stiffs in the group, as most of the members are retired. Obviously whenever I show up because of my real estate history in this area of the state, the conversation always goes straight to: “What is happening in the real estate market?”

I found myself in a very upbeat, and excited mood and I was raving about the real estate market and what I see happening over the next few years. I was particularly excited, because for the very first time in my entire career, I signed 30 closings in one day the day before the cruise and had in fact signed almost 60 closings that week.

Our business in March was up 31% over February and by April 9th, we had already passed the halfway mark of what we did in March. The real estate industry is heating up and will only continue to heat up. Needless to say I ended up surrounded by several members dying to hear the good news.

More

Lenders Flooded with Refinancing Applications as Mortgage Rates Fall | RISMedia

With mortgage rates dancing around a 65-year-low of 4.75%, homeowners are checking their credit scores and lenders are being deluged with refinancing applications.

“I’ve been through about four refinance crazes in my career, and this is the most significant I’ve seen,” said Marshall Boyd, co-president of Southwest Bank Mortgage and a founding and managing partner of Williams Trew Real Estate Services.

“The No. 1 reason is that rates are lower this time,” Boyd said. “I never dreamed we would be refinancing people with loans in the 5’s to loans in the 4’s.”

Linda and Jeff Hochster watched rates for several months before refinancing their home in Fort Worth’s Mira Vista neighborhood. “We started doing research and reaching out to brokers. We just kept watching as the rate was falling over the last 45 days,” said Linda Hochster, a retired public relations manager for Southwest Airlines.

More

Should sellers hire a home inspector? - ContraCostaTimes.com

By Barry Stone
Inspector s in the House

Posted: 04/12/2009 12:00:00 AM PDT

Q: Our house is on the market. We're waiting for offers and wondering if we should hire our own home inspector or let the buyer hire the inspector once we are in escrow. Our agent advises against hiring our own inspector. What do you think?

A: Some real estate agents are in favor of pre-sale home inspections and some are not. Here are the reasons why I favor them:

More

Tax Advice for Rental Property Owners - BusinessWeek

While you're not allowed to deduct principal payments on loans, there are a few tactics you can try to reduce your tax liability

My vacation rental business owns 23 properties on which we make over $200,000 in principal payments annually. Since we make $195,000 in annual profit, every year we end up in the hole financially. We take depreciation on the properties, but it doesn't offset our taxes by much. Is there a way to deduct the principal payments we're making on our properties? —D.P., Cartersville, Ga.

No. "You cannot deduct principal payments on loans," says Bill Fleming, a tax partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers. "This is a typical issue with any leveraged investment—especially real estate, since that is nearly always leveraged."

More

Housing Most Affordable: May be Time to Move from Renting to Owning

Falling housing prices, historically low interest rates, and tax credits are creating an enticing environment for renters to convert to homeowners.

"We are still going to have a tremendous amount of foreclosures, price declines, and best opportunities to buy properties at amazing prices," says Bruce Norris of The Norris Group.

If that sounds like a mixed bag of bad and good, indeed it is. Consumers have been inundated with news about a troubled real estate market. "If you look at the closings for California, 55 percent or more closings every month are lender-owned properties; that ratio has never existed before. So, the lenders are really dictating the prices at this point and there are so many [lender-owned properties] that the appraiser almost has no choice but to give that comp a lot of credence," says Norris. But the good news, especially for those who have been wanting to take the plunge into homeownership is that markets across the country are ripe for choosing the most suitable home.

More

Time to refinance? You've got to run the numbers - MarketWatch

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Question: I have a two-year-old, 15-year cash-out refi in Texas. It's now considered a home equity loan, at 6.5%. I am thinking that it does not make sense for me to refinance again at 5% to save $170 per month because I would have to pay two additional years on the back end.

The savings is net of borrowing 100% of the $5,000 in closing costs, so there will be no up-front cash out of pocket. The original loan was for $143,500 and has a balance of $131,500. By refinancing, the $1,250 payment would be reduced to $1,080 on a new loan balance of $136,500. E.L.

Answer: To make the right choice, at least arithmetically, you gotta run the numbers. Here's how:

1. Figure out what you are going to spend by refinancing. In your case, that would be $5,000 plus, since you are going to roll that amount into the loan's principal, whatever your interest costs will be.

More

Mortgage rates rise, but 30-year fixed-rate still below 5% - MarketWatch

CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- Mortgage rates rose this week, but the average rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages remained below 5%, according to Freddie Mac's weekly survey of conforming mortgage rates, released on Thursday.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.87% for the week ending April 9, up from last week's 4.78% average. The mortgage averaged 5.88% a year ago.

Rates on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 4.54%, up from 4.52% last week. The mortgage averaged 5.42% a year ago.

Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 4.93%, up slightly from 4.92% last week, but still well below their 5.56% average a year ago. One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs averaged 4.83%, up from last week's 4.75%; the ARMs averaged 5.18% a year ago.

More

What is a 1031 Exchange

By C. Grant Conness, President, 1031 Alternatives Group

Many investors have asked what exactly is a 1031 exchange, what are the guidelines and timelines, and can you legally defer your capital gains taxes? I thought it would be beneficial to answer some of your most common questions in this article.

What is a §1031 Exchange?

A §l031 Exchange is a transaction in which a taxpayer is allowed to exchange one investment property for another by deferring the tax consequence of a sale. The transaction is authorized by §1031 of the IRS Code.

The IRS Code actually reads: "No gain or loss shall be recognized on the exchange of property held for productive use in a trade or business or for investment, if such property is exchanged solely for property of like kind, which is to be held either for productive use in a trade or business or for investment."

More

Featured Homes Near Monta Vista High 041109

Ramona Ct., $1,598,000, 4 Bedrooms, 2.5 Bathrooms, 2230 SqFt
Regnart Rd., $1,548,000, 6 Bedrooms, 3.5 Bathrooms, 3765 SqFt
Canyon Vista, $990,000, 2 Bedrooms, 2 Bathrooms, 2119 SqFt
Scotland Dr., $899,000, 3 Bedrooms, 2 Bathrooms, 1190 SqFt

Fremont Bank lends $800 million in home mortgages - San Francisco Business Times:

Fremont Bank said Friday that it has made $800 million in home mortgages in the past 90 days.

The loans went to 3,600 borrowers and the bank expects to provide an additional 15,000 to 20,000 homeowners the ability to refinance by year-end.

The figures show that community banks are participating in the mortgage lending boom as mortgage rates fall to the lowest levels in years. Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) said Thursday that it expects record first-quarter profit resulting from its purchase of Wachovia and its brisk mortgage business.

More

Nearby Homes Feel Effect of Foreclosures

Foreclosure homes vary in appearance from community to community. Some foreclosure sales are handled quietly and quickly resold by the lender for market value. One day a moving van pulls up, loads the occupant’s belongings and departs, shortly followed by a real estate broker’s For Sale sign. Few weeks later, a sold sign pops up and new owners move in.

In other neighborhoods, a foreclosed home might be boarded up and plastered with large signs advertising bank-owned or REO. Some of those homes might remain in an abandoned condition for years. The weeds grow high enough to cover sidewalks, pranksters throw rocks through second-floor windows, and the home becomes an eyesore, a dumping ground for used mattresses and automobile parts.

More

Clock Is Ticking For First-Time Home Buyers - MarketWatch Video

Clock Is Ticking For First-Time Home Buyers - MarketWatch Video

With Affordability Up, Home Buyers Return to the Market

Thanks to record low mortgage rates and declining home prices, 55 million families - or half of all U.S. households - can afford today’s $200,000 median-priced new home, according to figures released by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). “That’s an increase of 17 million households from conditions just two years ago and the best housing affordability number we have seen in years,” said NAHB Chairman Joe Robson, a home builder from Tulsa, Okla. “We are now seeing the first signs that buyers are returning to the marketplace.”

Based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau comparing home prices, mortgage rates and minimum income needed to purchase a median-priced home in February 2007 and February 2009, a typical family today can purchase a house with $20,000 less in household income and save nearly $500 per month on their principal, interest, taxes and insurance. The number of households that can afford to purchase a home today is 55.4 million, compared with 38.4 million two years ago, according to figures compiled by NAHB.

More

Best Tips to Get Your House in Tip Top Shape | RISMedia

As the all-important spring selling season approaches in an historically slow housing market, sellers need to do all they can to market their home - and that includes staging it to attract and “wow” potential buyers. Home stagers know just the right moves to take a house from bland to grand and bring home the biggest return on investment. “Attention to detail throughout the home can make the difference between a house that sells and one that sits on the market,” explains Kate Hart, one of America’s top home stagers and owner of Hart & Associates Staging & Design.

“In particular, improvements to the kitchen and bath - the two rooms that sell a home - will always help bring in the buyers.”

More

Top Economists Say Recovery Has Begun

Economic recovery is about making people feel more confident, says Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Economy.com.

Zandi evidenced increasing home sales and gains in the stock market are some promising signs that the worst is over and people will start spending again.

“We’re starting to see some pent-up demand for goods,” he says.

But Zandi warns that the situation is still fragile. "Confidence is a very fickle thing. It can go from abject pessimism that pervades now to a more balanced view of the world rather quickly.”

Robert Brusca of FAO Economics is predicting strong growth in the last half of the year and a quick recovery for the labor market. "You've lost 5 million jobs. It shouldn't be hard to put 2.5 million jobs back on rather quickly after you hit bottom," he said.

Joseph Carson, chief economist at AllianceBernstein, calls improving home sales, a rising stock market, and better-than-expected retail sales in February and March good signs of a turnaround. By the time President Obama’s stimulus package takes effect, the economy will be ready, he says.

"The stimulus has a much better chance of working if trends are already turning up than if it needs to halt a decline," he said.

Source: CNNMoney, Chris Isidore (04/06/2009)

At-Risk Homeowners in Luck - Multi-Agency Crackdown Targeting Foreclosure Rescue Scams, Loan Modification Fraud in Place | RISMedia

RISMEDIA, April 7, 2009-As homeowners and communities throughout the country continue to face devastating consequences from the deep contraction in the economy and the housing market, the Obama Administration announced a new coordinated effort across federal and state government and the private sector to target mortgage loan modification fraud and foreclosure rescue scams that threaten to hurt American homeowners and prevent them from getting the help they need during these challenging times. The new effort aligns responses from federal law enforcement agencies, state investigators and prosecutors, civil enforcement authorities, and the private sector to protect homeowners seeking assistance under the Administration’s Making Home Affordable program from criminal actors looking to perpetrate predatory schemes.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and the Attorney General of Illinois discussed new initiatives to coordinate information and resources across agencies to maximize targeting and efficiency in fraud investigations, alert financial institutions to emerging schemes, step up enforcement actions and educate consumers to help those in financial trouble avoid becoming the victims of a loan modification or foreclosure rescue scam.

More

Survey Says Owners Still Overvalue Homes | RISMedia

RISMEDIA, April 7, 2009-(MCT)-Many home sellers are still out of touch with the changing housing market, a new survey shows.

Almost half of homeowners think their houses should be priced 10% to 20% higher than their sales agents have recommended, according to a nationwide survey by California-based HomeGain.

No wonder fewer than 20% of agents nationwide are reporting that home buyers are telling them that homes on the market are priced fairly.

Almost 60% of agents say potential buyers are telling them that home asking prices are too high, HomeGain found.

More

Down Payment Resources

12 Ways to Find a Down Payment

By Elizabeth Weintraub, About.com

Home ownership in America has increased from 25% in the early 1900s to 67% at the end of that century. During all those years, many home buyers struggled to come up with a down payment. In some cases, the banks required as much as 50% down before they would lend on a mortgage.

Today, the desired down payment is typically 20%; however, few people have that much cash available to them. FHA loans, for example, require only 3.5% down. But the fact remains that the more a buyer puts down, the lower the mortgage. Low mortgage balances carry low mortgage payments.

Here are 12 ways to find that down payment.

More

Despite downturn, 2008 was record year for sales of high-end homes - San Jose Mercury News

By Sue McAllister

Mercury News

Posted: 04/05/2009 01:01:00 PM PDT

Last year was a grim time in the real estate market, wasn't it? Foreclosures, falling values, the credit crunch.

Nonetheless, in Santa Clara County more homes sold for $5 million or more than at any time since the dot-com-nirvana year of 2000. And in San Mateo County — home to luxury-home strongholds like Atherton and Woodside — it was a record-breaking year for sales of super-expensive castles.

Only in the final quarter of 2008 did the recession finally bite into the top end of the market, sending sales plummeting. While the super rich weathered the early days of the credit crisis far better than most, experts say, last fall's stock market crash drastically impaired their ability to snap up multi-million-dollar manses.

At least 31 homes in Santa Clara County and 60 in San Mateo County sold for $5 million or more in 2008, according to MDA DataQuick, which gathered the information from public records. There were probably even more such sales, the company said, because buyers and sellers of very expensive homes often opt to "hide" the price when their deeds are recorded.

More

Jumbo mortgage rates starting to become more affordable - MarketWatch

CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- Jumbo mortgages became more expensive and harder to come by as the nation's credit crisis deepened. That might be starting to change.

"Jumbo" refers to mortgages that are too large to be bought by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae. The "conforming loan limit" for those government-backed entities is $417,000 in many parts of the country, but goes as high as $729,750 in high-cost areas of the continental United States.

Bank of America recently began trumpeting its jumbo program, offering 30-year fixed-rate jumbo mortgages with rates in the high 5% range, said Vijay Lala, product management executive for the bank. "We decided it was time to really go after that market," he said.

More lenders may soon join in, said Guy Cecala, publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance.

More

Housing law changes key capital gains rule

A little-publicized section of a 2008 federal law intended to help homeowners could reduce the amount of capital gains, or profit, that home sellers may exclude from taxation.

Under the previous law, a homeowner could exclude up to $250,000 in capital gains ($500,000 for a couple) from the sale of his principal residence if he had lived there for at least two of the past five years. The period of occupancy didn't have to be successive. It just had to meet the test of two of the past five years.

For example, if the homeowner paid $500,000 for the house, owned it for five years but lived in it for only two years and sold it for $750,000, he would walk away with a tax-free $250,000 gain - cash in his pocket. (For the sake of simplicity, this example doesn't include adjustments that reduce the amount of capital gains.)

More

Eligibility Requirements And Getting Started With The Making Home Affordable Program

The Making Home Affordable program is officially official. Mortgage lenders are now processing applications and paperwork for the help-the-homeowner plan often referred to as "The Obama Plan".

Because Making Home Affordable is a new program, there have been a lot of questions about how it works, who is eligible, and how to apply for a Making Home Affordable refinance.

What follows is a collection of questions and answers from my clients, the press, plus other things I think you should know.

Of primary importance -- first -- are two points:

1. Only Fannie Mae- and Freddie Mac-backed loans are eligible for The Obama Plan
2. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac use different sets of refinancing rules

Be forewarned. In some respects, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are like the National League and the American League -- it's the same game, but with different rules. Or, maybe a NFL / CFL comparison is more apropos.

More

Making an Offer on a Home. It’s not all about the Benjamin’s… — The Phoenix Real Estate Guy

If you read enough Q&A sites, talk to enough people, and listen closely, you will often hear this when people talk about making an offer on a home:

“We put in a full price offer and didn’t get the house!”

or

“The seller’s accepted an offer from someone who offered less than we did!”

Most peoples gut instinct leads them to believe that what matters in making an offer on a home is the price. Part of this may stem from real estate agents incessant harping that “price is everything”. And while aggressive pricing is the key factor in getting a home sold (at least in the Phoenix real estate market, and many other US markets as well), there are other factors besides price that a seller should evaluate on any offer their home receives. And if the seller is evaluating other factors, the savvy buyer will consider those factors when making an offer on a home…

More

Government cracking down on mortgage scams - San Jose Mercury News

Associated Press

Posted: 04/06/2009 08:36:26 AM PDT

WASHINGTON — Top federal and state officials today announced a broad crackdown on mortgage modification scams, accusing "criminal actors" of preying on desperate borrowers caught up in the nation's housing crisis.

Government officials say scammers are seeking to take advantage of borrowers in danger of default. The frauds often involve companies with official-sounding names designed to make borrowers think they are taking advantage of the Obama administration's efforts to help modify or refinance 7 to 9 million mortgages.

Officials say such operations almost always are fraudulent, and that help is available for free from government-approved housing counselors.

More

Selling in Spring

Spring is the optimum time to sell a home. Regardless of whether it's a buyer's market or a seller's market, inventory almost always rises in the spring. Why? Because the largest number of buyers are actively searching for a new home during the months of April, May and June.

Tip: If your home has been languishing on the market since the holidays, take it off the market. Give it a chance to "cool down" for a few weeks before putting it back on the market. Nobody is going to look at your home in the spring if the DOM show it's been on the market for several months. Buyers gravitate toward fresh, new listings!

Here are 15 things you can do to improve the odds that your home will stand out among the sea of new listings flooding the spring-time real estate market:

More

How not to be a victim of foreclosure fraud

by Jay Hammond on March 31, 2009

As the number of struggling homeowners facing foreclosure continues to rise, so do the number of unscrupulous individuals and firms will to prey on them.

“A mortgage lender or a financial counselor can assist you in finding real options to avoid foreclosure,” said Sissy Osteen, an Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension resource management specialist. “If someone is offering to consult with your lender and offers to arrange to stop or delay foreclosure for a fee be sure to check his or her credentials, reputation and experience. It’s important to protect yourself and not be a victim of a foreclosure scam.”

More

First-Time Home Buyer? Choose When to Claim Your Tax Credit | RISMedia

RISMEDIA, April 4, 2009-With the deadline for filing federal tax returns fast approaching, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) has made information available for qualified home buyers about how and when to claim the $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit.

The basic eligibility requirements for the credit are: the home must have been purchased on or after Jan. 1 and before Dec. 1, 2009; the buyer may not have owned a home in the three years prior to the purchase; and the buyer must have a modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) less than $95,000 for single tax payers or $170,000 for married filers.

Two factors affect the amount of credit qualified buyers can claim: it can only be equal to 10% of the purchase price of the home, up to a maximum of $8,000; and it is reduced for buyers with a MAGI between $75,000 for single taxpayers ($150,000 for married filers) and the upper income limit.

More

6 Reasons Why It's Still a Good Time to Buy

The housing market is looking healthier. Here are six reasons why now is the time to jump into the market.

1. Uncle Sam is willing to help. First-time buyers (defined as anyone who hasn’t owned a home in the last three years) are entitled to a maximum $8,000 tax credit; interest rates are at record lows; and the Federal Reserve is doing its best to make mortgage loans available. (Sign up for a Webinar to learn more about the home buyer tax credit)

2. People have to live somewhere. About 800,000 new households are formed each year in this country, ensuring that the housing market will tighten, even if the economy doesn’t soar.

3. Borrowers leverage their investment. If you put $10,000 into the stock market and it earns 10 percent, you’ve earned $1,000. If you put $10,000 down on a home and its values increases 10 percent, you’ve made $10,000.

4. When prices come back up, you’ll have instant equity. In parts of the country where foreclosures have driven down prices, better times will mean the price of the home you buy will rise rapidly.

5. Mortgage costs stay the same. If you get a fixed-rate mortgage, the monthly payment stays the same – while everything else, including rent, goes upward.

6. You own it. There is something comforting in the notion that your home is your own. You can paint it any color you want, let the dog run in the back yard and hang a swing for the kids in the front.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, June Fletcher (03/27/2009)

Featured Homes Near Monta Vista High 040409

Terra Bella, $1,528,000, 4 Bedrooms, 2.5 Bathrooms, 2255 SqFt
Castine Ave., $1,318,888, 5 Bedrooms, 2.5 Bathrooms, 2440 SqFt
Linda Vista, $1,259,000, 3 Bedrooms, 2 Bathrooms, 1678 SqFt
Country Spring, $1,249,000, 3 Bedrooms, 2.5 Bathrooms, 1956 SqFt
Lockwood Dr., $1,125,000, 3 Bedrooms, 2 Bathrooms, 1910 SqFt
Almaden Ave., $789,000, 2 Bedrooms, 1 Bathroom, 934 SqFt

Is California real estate coming back?

No state has been harder hit by the housing bust than California.

It has piled up more foreclosures and has endured among the worst home-price declines. The median price of a single-family home sold in February was $247,590, down 41% from 12 months earlier, according to the California Association of Realtors (CAR).

And home construction in the Golden State has nearly vanished: December housing permits shrank to about a quarter of what they were during the boom years, according to the National Association of Homebuilders.

More

Buying Foreclosed Homes: Be Careful

If you're looking for a great deal on a house, one option might be to purchase a home that's in foreclosure.

But Early Show financial contributor Vera Gibbons says the process isn't for everyone: It's complicated and fraught with potential stumbling blocks.

There's certainly no shortage of properties in or approaching foreclosure to pick from.

Some three million foreclosures are expected this year alone, according to the Web site RealtyTrac.com>, three-to-four times the usual number.

Prices usually range from 20 to 80 percent below market value, depending on where the house is located.

More

Types of Home Inspections

Question: What Types of Home Inspections Can a Buyer Do?

A reader asks, "My husband and I had our offer accepted last night on a house in a really cool neighborhood. The house is a little old, so we're concerned that it might not pass a home inspection. Our agent says a home inspector might refer us to other inspectors. What other inspectors? What types of home inspections can a buyer do?"

Answer: Your real estate agent should be able to give you a list of the types of home inspections that are generally conducted in your area. She is correct in saying that your home inspector might suggest that you hire other inspectors.

Does a Home Inspector Check Everything in a House?

More

5 Recommendations for Navigating Today’s Mortgage and Housing Markets

”There are five distinct strategies that can help home owners, buyers, and sellers successfully navigate today’s turbulent mortgage and housing markets,” said Gibran Nicholas, chairman of the CMPS Institute, an organization that certifies mortgage bankers and brokers.

1. Understand and Utilize the New Tax Credits. Many home owners are not aware that the latest government stimulus package gives them a special tax credit of up to $1,500 for making certain home improvements. Also, if you are buying a primary home and you have not owned a primary residence in the last 3 years, you may qualify for the new $8,000 first-time-homebuyer tax credit. “Although you can’t use the credit to help with your down payment, the credit can be claimed on your 2008 tax returns if you buy the home in 2009,” Nicholas said. “This means that even if you buy the home after you file your taxes on April 15, you can simply file an amended 2008 tax return and the IRS will send you a refund check for $8,000.”

More

Mortgage Rates 'as Low as 2 percent'

Some of the 3 to 4 million homeowners eligible for loan modifications could see interest rates as low as 2 percent under the Obama administration's new "Making Home Affordable" (MHA) initiative.

Originally dubbed the "Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan," MHA contains a provision to modify mortgages for qualified homeowners struggling to make the monthly payment.

A loan modification, unlike a refinance, changes the terms of the existing loan without writing a new one. Modifications are designed to make mortgages more affordable.

Also called a "workout," this provision is open to anyone including those who haven't missed payments, but may be at risk of missing payments.

The modification plan is open to anyone with any loan that has a balance under Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac limits, which now as high as $729,750 in some high-cost areas.

More

Questions to Ask Buyers to Get Feedback

The most important question a home seller can ask a buyer who has just finished viewing a home is "What did you think?" Yet, many sellers (and their agents) hesitate to get buyer feedback after showings. Why? Some people don't know which questions to ask, and others, most likely, are afraid to hear the answers.

Buyer feedback is essential. Without it, home sellers won't know what they are doing right and what could be improved upon. Because after all, it doesn't really matter what the seller thinks. It's the buyer's opinion that matters.

Here are sample questions that you can use to get buyer feedback:

More

Pending home sales rise 2.1 percent in February from January

An index that tracks signed contracts to purchase previously occupied homes rose in February from a record low a month earlier as buyers took advantage of deeply discounted prices and low interest rates.

The National Association of Realtors said today said its seasonally adjusted index of pending sales for previously occupied homes rose 2.1 percent — in line with expectations — to 82.1 in February from January's record low of 80.4.

Typically there is a one- to two-month lag between a contract and a done deal, so the index is a barometer for future home sales.

Because of falling home prices and mortgage rates, homeownership is more affordable than it's been since at least 1970, the trade group said.

More

Bidding Wars Over a House? Real Estate Pros See Bottom

One hour outside of Washington DC, in the picturesque small city of Martinsburg, West Virginia, some homes for sale are attracting bidding wars—again.

“Prices are so low, we’re starting to see that," says Marc Savitt, a realtor there for a quarter of a century. “In our area, you’re at the bottom.”

Allan Ferguson California Suburbs

Savitt, who’s also president of the National Association Of Mortgage Brokers, might be accused of being overly optimistic. But he is hardly alone in sensing a long-awaited bottom in the real estate market.

• Slideshow: Highest-End Real Estate
• Slideshow: Most Affordable Metro Areas

For most at this point, it’s less a matter of bold confidence that cautious optimism, but data are emerging to make a reasonable case.

Three categories of home sales—new, existing and pending – all posted surprise gains in February, along with housing starts are posted surprise gains in February.

More

How to Buy After Bankruptcy or Foreclosure

Put your fears aside. Just because you have bad credit, filed bankruptcy or gone through a foreclosure does not mean you cannot buy a home. You most certainly can buy a home with bad credit. But you're going to pay more than a borrower who has sparkling credit.

The Waiting Period After Foreclosure / Bankruptcy

• The period between bankruptcy filings is seven years, but the ding to your credit report stays for 10 years.
• For better rates with a conforming loan, the wait is four years after filing bankruptcy.
• FHA guidelines are two years after a foreclosure, which means you could qualify for as little as 3.5% down.
• Hard-money lenders will often make loans six months after filing bankruptcy or a foreclosure, but will a require 20 to 35% down payment. The interest rate will be very high and the loan terms are not as favorable; many will contain prepayment penalties and be adjustable.
• Subprime lenders (not to be confused with hard-money lenders) are no longer making 100% financed loans.

More

30-Year Mortgage Rates Remain Low for Second Week

The weekly average rate borrowers were quoted on Zillow Mortgage Marketplace for 30-year mortgages remained relatively steady for the second consecutive week at 5.09%, up slightly from 5.06% the week prior, according to the Zillow Mortgage Rate Monitor, compiled by real estate website Zillow.com. Meanwhile, rates for 15-year fixed mortgages increased to 4.80%, up from 4.73% and 5-1 adjustable rate mortgages dropped, down to 4.66% from 4.69% the week prior.

Mortgage Type Average Rate Average Rate % Change
Week ending 3/29/09 Week ending 3/22/09

30-year fixed 5.09% 5.06% 0.6%
15-year fixed 4.80% 4.73% 1.5%
5-1 ARM 4.66% 4.69% -0.6%

Rates for 30-year fixed purchase mortgages had decreased slightly, with the average rate on Zillow Mortgage Marketplace at 4.99%.

More