Foreclosure Activity Slows in January
Foreclosure filings, including default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions, declined 10 percent in January from December, but is still up 18 percent from January 2008, according to RealtyTrac, an online marketer of foreclosure properties. One in every 466 homes received a foreclosure filing during the month, for a total of 274,399 total filings.
Nevada [...]
Congress Trims Proposed $15K Homebuyer Tax Credit
The economic stimulus deal reached by House and Senate leaders reportedly slashed the Senate’s proposed $15,000 homebuyer tax credit. The Associated Press reports that the $35 billion homebuyer tax credit included in the Senate bill was cut down to a $2 billion to $3 billion plan that would allow first-time homebuyers to claim an $8,000 [...]
Homeowners Optimistic about Future Home Values
Homeowners’ perceptions of the state of the housing market may finally be moving in line with reality. According to Zillow’s Q4 Homeowner Confidence Survey, more than half (57 percent) of homeowners believe their own home lost value during 2008 compared to 51 percent at the end of the third quarter and 38 percent at the [...]
Congress Mulls Homebuyer Tax Credit
There are some big differences in the homebuyer tax credit included in the distinct versions of the economic stimulus package passed by the House and the Senate. The Wall Street Journal provides an informative overview of the two proposals here.
The Senate approved its $838 billion economic stimulus bill today, clearing the way for negotiations with [...]
5 Acers are to be released in the Seaport by the USPS
The cash-strapped U.S. Postal Service is unloading 5 acres of vacant land on A Street in South Boston.The 5-acre plot, part of the Postal Service’s extensive real estate holdings in Boston’s Fort Point neighborhood, was formerly used for truck storage. It’s a sizable slice of a parking lot that creates a gap in the warehouse [...]
Hancock Tower Faces Foreclosure
Even the most famous building in Boston real estate is not immune from the foreclosure crisis. The John Hancock Tower, one of the Back Bay’s most notable landmarks, is scheduled to be auctioned off to the highest bidder next month after owner, Broadway Partners, defaulted on some of its debt payments. Broadway Partners purchased the building in December 2006 [...]
U.S. Housing Market Bottom May Be in Sight
While the current economic outlook remains gloomy and the housing market is still weak in many parts of the country, a new report by Moody’s Economy.com suggests that there are some positive signs that the conditions in the housing market could improve later this year.
According to the report, “Housing in Crisis: When Will Metro Markets [...]
Remodeling Market Down But Not Out
While the home remodeling industry has experienced a slowdown and has yet to reach bottom, new research by Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies finds that the correction will be less severe and could rebound sooner than the home building industry as home improvement opportunities emerge over the next few years.
The report, The Remodeling [...]
New-Home Sales Dive in 2008
Sales of new single-family homes were at a seasonally adjusted rate of 331,000 in December, 14.7 percent below the November rate of 388,000 and 44.8 percent below the December 2007 estimate of 600,000, the U.S. Commerce Department reported last week.
For the entire year, an estimated 482,000 new homes were sold in 2008, a decline of [...]
