My Journal

My goal with this website is to provide you with the best and most accurate information which I have gathered. Hopefully, besides the documents about the home buying and selling process on the other pages of this site, I will provide information here on topics which arise each month. If you are interested in topics about your home, home inspections, real estate market (specifically in Houston), gardening, or mortgages and finances (like new homeowner budgets) take a look at my blog at www.aninspectorslog.wordpress.com . I have expanded the range of the blog to include family activities and sites around Houston. Look at the Links page to find other places where I have been producing articles.

30 June 2008

The slow summer? Traditionally, stocks drop in value during the summer; and housing sales slow as the new school year approaches. Generally the news is light when it comes to real estate, yet this month has brought us some surprises. Stocks plunged as fears about the financial crisis abide, and two events led to renewed focus in the residential housing sector: the indictments of 400 people for fraud related to mortgages; and the court decision supporting internet real estate brokerages having access to the MLS. Of course there was news of foreclosures continuing to climb, the problems of buyer expectations in the current market, and real estate scams. Many are debating the bill in Congress to help homeowners stay in their homes, which may or may not be signed by the president, and which would not help anyone till next year. All of this news is coupled with data that shows that the US economy is not in bad shape; we just believe it is worse than it is. My analysis: It is easy to dramatize the news that sales are slowing down or that stock prices are slipping, but are we making too much of it? Yes, it is worse than other times, but this situation is following a pattern that has happened every summer. There are some in the mortgage industry who feel that most brokers have been exonerated, since they are not being investigated, and although the National Association of Realtors lost its case over access to their house listings to the internet brokerages, both events indicate a shift, which may become permanent. This is how real estate may be conducted in the future. It really has not happened to a great degree yet, but the financial industry may come under more scrutiny on a regular basis. Many have turned to the internet for information on mortgage fraud. Buyers have been turning to the internet more for information, and they are become knowledgeable on the process. Internet brokerages offer a new way to handle these transactions, which may appeal to those who have gone the for sale by owner route, and they may appeal to these smarter shoppers. Maybe now is a good time for the real estate industry to have a good shake up, to create a better environment for the seller and buyer alike.

30 May 2008

So is that good news or bad? Focus has been on risng fuel  and food costs this past month, so housing has not been gaining the attention that it has recently. Although there have been some events worth noting. Housing starts was reported to have its largest increase in a long time. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported increased home sales, but prices are still coming down. In Houston the trend has been reversed. NAR also lost a suit against online Realtors to prevent them from accessing the MLS, which is the service that lists homes from different real estate firms. The positive news for NAR on this front is that they did not have to pay damages. The Rebate checks have been sent out, and they did not stimulate the housing market as some Realtors were insisting that it would. The more likely candidate for stimulating the housing market is the Tax Credit proposal working its way through Congress, which will give definite incentives to encourage first time home buyers. In continuing news, there is still fallout happening among financial institutions from the subprime crisis, and it looks like it will still play out through the year.   My analysis: All real estate is local? We keep hearing this statement being made, but it appears more true now than ever before. National trends do not give a good picture to what is happening in your neighborhood. Housing starts were so dramatic, because builders have not been beginning new projects, just completing older ones. Yet this fact was reported as a significant step in a turnaround in the housing market. Builder revenues and stocks are going down, and coupled with the problems lenders are having, we will not see a national change in housing till next year at least. Even the bills making their way through Congress cannot take effect till next year. They do make for good election yeat rhetoric. In my own practice, I am seeing many investors come into the market, which may not be a bad thing. The lesson that we learned has been that some people should be more prepared when buying a home, so they should be renters. Taking the homes off the market is good for neighborhoods, and it may be that investors will be better educated this time around.