Housing Inventory declines 18.9% year-over-year

On the national level, inventory of for-sale single family homes, condominiums, townhouses and co-ops declined by -18.85% in April 2012 compared to a year ago, and declined in all but five of the 146 markets covered… These key indicators continue to suggest the housing market may be at a turning point and headed towards a broad-based recovery.

JPMorgan CEO: Improving Housing Market

I believe we’re very close to the inflection point (on housing). People look at prices that are still coming down but all the other signs are flashing green,” [CEO Jamie Dimon] said… “the shadow inventory everyone talks about is lower today than it was 12 months ago. It will be a lot lower 12 months from now,” he said. Distressed inventory “is actually coming down, not going up. Homes for sale are about half what they were four years ago. You could come up with a pretty bullish case.

Las Vegas Home sales up 13% in February, Inventory off sharply

Sales in 2011 were at record levels, more than during the bubble, and it looks like 2012 will be an even stronger year – even with some new rules that slow the foreclosure process. The total number of local homes, condominiums and townhomes sold in February was 3,794. That’s up from 3,591 in January, and up from 3,371 total sales in February 2011. An important component is the decline in inventory. Total single family inventory was down 15.4% and excluding contingent listings, it was down 45.6% year over year!

Southern California Home Sales Jump in Feb, Prices Down Yr/Yr

The Southland housing market posted the highest number of February home sales in five years as record levels of investor and cash buyers helped spur robust activity under $300,000. The median price paid for homes across the six-county region inched up from January but dropped below the year-earlier level for the 12th consecutive month, a real estate information service reported. The increase in sales between January and February was larger than usual. On average, sales have risen 1.1 percent between those two months since 1988, when DataQuick’s statistics begin. Southland sales have increased year-over-year for two consecutive months and for six out of the last seven months.

Warren Buffet on the USA Housing Market

Warren Buffett makes several key USA housing points in the Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder meeting: Housing completions have been at record lows; there are currently more households being formed than new housing units completed, and this is decreasing the excess supply; the excess supply will be “sopped up” at different rates across the country; housing is a key reason for the sluggish economy (not the only reason).

US Housing Among Most Attractive Assets In The World

The housing market in the south of the United States is among the most attractive asset classes in the world, Marc Faber, the editor of the Gloom Boom & Doom Report, told CNBC on Friday, because while homebuilder stocks had rallied, property prices hadn’t moved much. “If you look at the supply of homes, new construction, and you compare it to immigration into the United States, to the growth of the population, then these markets are very attractive from a longer term perspective,” Faber told Bernie Lo on CNBC’s Straight Talk.

Las Vegas Region November Home Sales Rise

Last month the number of homes that resold rose 11.3 percent on a year-over-year basis, marking the 11th consecutive month in which resales have posted an annual gain. It was the highest number of resales for a November since 2009, and the second-highest since 2005. November sales of newly-built homes also rose from a year earlier, by 9.8 percent, but were still the second-lowest on record for a November. New-home sales have risen year-over-year for the past five consecutive months.

Pending Home Sales Rise To A Year-and-a-Half High

Pending home sales continued to gain in November and reached the highest level in 19 months, according to the National Association of Realtors®. The last time the index was higher was in April 2010 when it reached 111.5 as buyers rushed to beat the deadline for the home buyer tax credit. The Pending Home Sales Index is a leading indicator for the housing sector, based on pending sales of existing homes. A sale is listed as pending when the contract has been signed but the transaction has not closed, though the sale usually is finalized within one or two months of signing.

California November Home Sales

Indicators of market distress in Calirornia continue to move in different directions. Foreclosure activity is high, but not increasing. Financing with multiple mortgages is low, down payment sizes are stable, cash and non-owner occupied buying is flat at a high level, DataQuick reported.

Global Uncertainty: Is this a good time to buy USA Real Estate?

Often, we are asked by potential investors: Is this a good time to buy property in the USA?… When will the recovery happen?.. And what about the US Dollar?…  Isn’t it just better to invest at home? Here I attempt to answer these commonly asked questions… I actually traded for a living for a few years (for myself, not a job).  I’ve always loved reading about...