All the Real Estate News That’s Fit to RE-Print™

Welcome to our weekly edition of Real Estate Investing News This Week. We have four important stories this week:

• Home price gains could be threatened by another round of foreclosures and short sales hitting the market during the year.

• Foreclosure starts increased 10 percent from the previous month, but were still down 25 percent from February 2012.

• Bank REOs decreased 11 percent from the previous month and were down 29 percent from February 2012 to the lowest level since September 2007.

• Housing inventory is now at its lowest level since January 1994.

We hope these real estate news items help you stay up-to-date with your real estate investing strategies and inspire some profitable real estate deals for you.

Rebounding Foreclosures Threaten Price Gains in 1/3 of Major Metros

RealtyTrac’s Vice President Daren Blomquist says:
“Last week’s S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices report showed strong positive gains in home prices, but those positive gains are threatened by rebounding foreclosure activity in about one-third of the 20 markets tracked in the report….
[I]n at least seven of the 20 metros, home price gains could be threatened in 2013 by another round of foreclosures and short sales hitting the market during the year. That’s because those seven metros experienced rebounding foreclosure activity in 2012, and much of the new foreclosure activity from 2012 will translate into a rebound in the supply of short sales and bank-owned homes listed for sale in 2013.”

 

U.S. Bank Repossessions Drop to 65-Month Low in February as Foreclosure Starts Rebound 10 Percent From January

On Thursday, RealtyTrac® released its U.S. Foreclosure Market Report™ for February 2013, which shows foreclosure filings — default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions — were reported on 154,281 U.S. properties in February, an increase of 2 percent from the previous month but still down 25 percent from February 2012.
The report also shows one in every 849 U.S. housing units with a foreclosure filing during the month.
Key Findings From the Report:

• U.S. foreclosure starts increased 10 percent from the previous month after three consecutive monthly decreases, but were still down 25 percent from February 2012.

• U.S. bank repossessions (REOs) decreased 11 percent from the previous month and were down 29 percent from February 2012 to the lowest level since September 2007 — a 65-month low.

No Signs of a Slowdown for Prices; Market Poised for Supply Increase

Krista Franks Brock reports:
“Housing inventory is now at its lowest level since January 1994; home sales have exceeded listings for the past 25 months; and the upward trajectory in home prices starting at the end of last year continues, according to the latest US Housing Market Monthly from Capital Economics…
Home sales are “normal” relative to population, but supply remains low, according to the firm.”