Category
News
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11.13.08Real Estate RoundupLost in the shuffle of a National Election and an imploding economy, a number of real estate and housing indicators were released over the past few weeks, all of which bear note: National Association of Realtors Existing Home Sales Index: Existing home sales rose in 5.5 percent in September, and were 1.14 percent higher than September 2007. In the South, sales rose 2.2 percent, but remained 7.8 percent below last year. Case/Shiller: The 10-city index showed a loss of 1.1 percent in August and a yearly drop of 17.7 percent. The 20-city index fell 1.0 percent in August, and 16.6 percent for ...
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11.13.08Foreclosures increase 5 percent in OctoberForeclosure filings, including default notices, auction sale notices, and bank repossessions, increased 5.11 percent across the country in October, according to the latest report from RealtyTrac. That’s a 24.55 percent increase over October 2007, and represents that one out of every 452 households in the United States has been subject to some stage of the foreclosure process. The number of foreclosures would be much higher, but for foreclosure-prevention laws recently enacted in states such as California. These new laws provide for a longer waiting period, thereby delaying when homes fall into foreclosure – and they’re mostly seen as delaying the inevitable for ...
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11.05.08Foreclosures for a dollarThere's an interesting article over in today's Atlanta Journal and Constitution about HUD REOs going for a dollar apiece. The catch: you have to be a local government wanting to create affordable housing. Still, a dollar's not very much for a house. We’d love to be your real estate closing attorneys in Atlanta Georgia. Want to know more? Contact us and we’ll be happy to discuss how Harlan and Associates can be of service to you! Rent, originally uploaded by velo_city.
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10.17.08Housing starts take steep fallNew home construction dropped dramatically in September, according to the latest report by the U.S. Commerce Department. Total housing starts, a forward-looking indicator of the housing market, fell 6.3 percent last month. That’s 31 percent below the pace of construction in September 2007 and the lowest reading of the index in 17 years. Economists had predicted a drop of only 1.7 percent. Single-family housing starts took the greatest hit, falling 12 percent from last month and almost 42 percent from last year. In the South, total housing starts rose by 0.5 percent, though they were still 32.5 percent below last year’s numbers. Single-family starts, ...
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10.16.08Homebuilder confidence falls to record lowSometimes it’s tough to be a homebuilder. In the midst of extreme volatility on Wall Street and fears of a global economic slowdown, it seems that no one wants to buy new homes, and the confidence of homebuilders has taken a beating as a result. The National Association of Home Builders announced today that its index of builder confidence fell to a record low of 14 in October. Any reading in the index below 50 indicates negative sentiment about the market. The report surveys 446 residential developers across the country and gauges their perceptions of market conditions. We’d love to be your real estate closing attorneys ...
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10.08.08Pending home sales jump in AugustThe National Association of Realtors reported today that pending home sales increased 7.4 percent from July to August, and were 8.8 percent higher than last year. It’s the highest level of pending home sales since June 2007. The news was unexpectedly positive, as most economists had predicted that the index would fall in August. In the South, pending home sales only increased 2.3 percent in August but were still 2.1 percent below August of 2007. We’d love to be your real estate closing attorneys in Atlanta Georgia. Want to know more? Contact us and we’ll be happy to discuss how Harlan and Associates can be of service ...
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10.08.08Fed shaves half a point off interest rateThe Federal Reserve, in a move coordinated with central banks worldwide, has shaved the U.S. interest rate by half a point to 1.5 percent. The move, coming after approval of the $700 billion bailout and several days of steep selling in stock markets across the globe is another attempt to stem the tide of the continuing credit crunch. We’d love to be your real estate closing attorneys in Atlanta Georgia. Want to know more? Contact us and we’ll be happy to discuss how Harlan and Associates can be of service to you! The Only Way To Shave, originally uploaded by Leviathor.
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09.30.08Record plunge in July home pricesThe Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller index, released today, showed home prices dropping by a record amount in July, although the pace of monthly declines seems to be slowing. The 20-city index fell 0.9 percent in July and is down 16.3 percent from last year. That’s the largest drop in the index since it began in 2000. The 10-city fared no better, with prices dropping 1.1 percent from June and 17.5 percent since July 2007, which is the biggest decline in the 21-year history of the index. Overall, home prices have fallen nearly 20 percent nationwide since peaking in 2006. While the picture remains bleak for ...
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09.29.08House rejects bailoutThe House of Representatives has defeated the $700 billion plan to bail out the U.S. financial system, against the urging of President Bush, Treasury Secretary Paulson, Fed Chairman Bernanke, and others. Stocks plummeted on the news. Yes votes and no votes were bipartisan in nature, with significant votes for and against the bailout coming from the Democratic and Republican aisles. The bill has been wildly unpopular on Main Street. We’d love to be your Real Estate Lawyers in Atlanta. Want to know more? Contact us and we’ll be happy to discuss how Harlan and Associates can be of service to you! Nope, originally uploaded by califboy101.
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09.25.08WaMu shut down by OTS, sold to JPMorgan ChaseWaMu has been shut down by the Office of Thrift Supervision, with the FDIC being named as receiver. The long-troubled lender's banking operations have sold to JPMorgan Chase. The press release from the FDIC is here. Washington Mutual banking customers should see no disruption in services. Woo-Hoo, indeed. We’d love to be your Real Estate Lawyers in Atlanta. Want to know more?Contact us and we’ll be happy to discuss how Harlan and Associates can be of service to you! Ferme - Not Open Shut Closed, originally uploaded by idg.