10 Fastest Growing U.S. Cities
The fast-growing areas in the United States are in the Sunbelt, with Texas leading the way, according to data released today by the U.S. Census Bureau.
Dallas-Fort Worth added more than 162,000 residents between July 2006 and July 2007, more than any other metro area. Three other Texas cities — Houston, Austin, and San Antonio — also were in the top 10.
Experts credit much of the growth in the South to strong local economies and housing prices that are among the most affordable in the United States.
A report earlier this month by Global Insight found that housing prices in the Dallas area were undervalued by as much as 30 percent.
Other areas experiencing growth included the New Orleans area, which is recovering from Hurricane Katrina and grew by 4 percent or nearly 40,000 people. During the same survey last year, the population of New Orleans dropped by nearly 290,000 people.
Meanwhile, Detroit lost more than three times as many people as any other metro area — its population declined more than 27,300. Other areas losing more than 5,000 people were Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Columbus, Ga., Youngstown, Ohio, and Buffalo, N.Y.
The 10 biggest gainers:
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas: 162,250
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, Ga.: 151,063
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, Ariz.: 132,513
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Texas: 120,544
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif.: 86,660
Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, N.C.-S.C.: 66,724
Chicago-Naperville-Joliet, Ill.-Ind.-Wis.: 66,231
Austin-Round Rock, Texas: 65,880
Las Vegas-Paradise, Nev.: 59,165
San Antonio, Texas: 53,925
The 10 fast-growing metro areas
Palm Coast, Fla.: 7.2 percent
St. George, Utah: 5.1 percent
Raleigh-Cary, N.C.: 4.7 percent
Gainesville, Ga.: 4.5 percent
Austin-Round Rock, Texas: 4.3 percent
Myrtle Beach-Conway-N.C.-Myrtle Beach, S.C.: 4.2 percent
Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, N.C.-S.C.: 4.2 percent
New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, La.: 4 percent
Grand Junction, Colo.: 3.7 percent
Clarksville, Tenn.-Ky.: 3.7 percent
Source: The Associated Press, Paul J. Weber (03/27/08)
Last-Minute Home Owner Tax Primer
As April 15 approaches, here’s what home owners need to know about the deductibility of mortgage interest and property taxes.
Taxpayers may deduct on Schedule A of Form 1040 mortgage interest on the purchase or home equity debt on two residences, their primary home and another dwelling, including a boat or a mobile home. These dwellings must have sleeping, cooking, and toilet facilities to qualify for a loan interest deduction. Interest paid on vacant land isn’t deductible.
Real estate taxes are deductible on all properties owned by the taxpayer — not just the first two. The deduction must be taken in the year the taxes are paid. Taxes placed in escrow are deductible when they are paid to the taxing authority, not when the money is put in escrow. Penalties and interest on late tax payments aren’t deductible.
Also, in order to deduct taxes and interest, the taxpayer must itemize instead of taking the standard deduction.
Source: Houston Chronicle, Shannon Buggs (03/27/08)
Feds Charge 19 With Mortgage Fraud
Federal prosecutors announced 19 indictments Monday in a mortgage scheme that stole nearly $13 million in home equity and victimized more than 100 home owners.
Under the scam, home owners facing foreclosure were promised lower home payments and cash up-front if they agreed to add another name to their home’s title. The victims were led to believe they were paying rent to the investors to give them time to get their affairs in order, according to officials.
Prosecutors say the scam was headed by Charles Head of La Habra, Calif. Prosecutors say additional indictments are likely as they continue investigating.
In all, prosecutors say Head defrauded 115 financially strapped home owners in 22 states of at least $12.6 million. The fraud began in and continued through 2006.
Victims ranged from first-time home buyers to the elderly and cost 90 percent of the victims their homes, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Ellen Endrizzi.
Source: The Associated Press, Aaron C. Davis (03/24/08)
Existing-Home Sales Rise in February
Sales of existing homes increased in February and remain within a fairly stable range, according to the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®.
Existing-home sales – including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops – rose 2.9 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.03 million units in February from a pace of 4.89 million in January, but remain 23.8 percent below the 6.60 million-unit level in February 2007. The sales pace has been in a fairly narrow range since last September.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, says the gain is encouraging. “We’re not expecting a notable gain in existing-home sales until the second half of this year, but the improvement is another sign that the market is stabilizing,” he says. “Buyers taking advantage of higher loan limits for both FHA and conventional mortgages will unleash some pent-up demand. As inventories are drawn down, prices in many markets should go positive later this year.”
The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $195,900 in February, down 8.2 percent from a year earlier when the median was $213,500. Because the slowdown in sales from a year ago is greater in high-cost areas, there is a downward pull to the national median with relatively fewer sales in higher priced markets.
Condos May Flood Overloaded Areas
Thousands of condos are expected to further flood the market this year as units that were being built during the housing boom finally hit the market.
Reis Inc., a real estate research firm, says more than 4,000 new units are expected to be up for sale in Atlanta and Phoenix this year; developers in Miami and Fort Lauderdale, Fla., are about to release 10,000 more units; San Diego will add 2,500 units.
The deluge is bad news for developers and the lenders that provided the money. Lenders of all sizes have $42 billion tied up in condominiums, according to Foresight Analytics. Between the third and fourth quarters of 2007, delinquency on that debt rose to 10 percent from 5.9 percent.
Some buyers who have put down a deposit are expected to walk away as prices drop, experts say.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, Jennifer S. Forsyth and Jonathan Karp (03/22/2008)
Smaller Floor Plans in Big Demand
American’s appetite for big homes and over-sized furniture appears to be shrinking.
New-home buyers began asking builder KB Home for smaller floor plans right after the collapse in subprime lending last year, says CEO Jeffrey Mezger.
The demand for a huge, high-ceilinged great room is giving way to the desire for special-purpose rooms, including media rooms and home offices, says a spokesman for luxury specialist Pulte Homes.
In three of its four new sofa collections, Younger Furniture is offering “apartment size” sofas, which are about 10 inches shorter than full-sized ones. Citing a trend toward smaller homes, Rowe Fine Furniture says it expects its Mini Mod line will account for a quarter of its collection this fall.
“They’re finally getting it,” says Jodi FitzGerald, owner of Door Store Furniture, an 11-store retail chain in metropolitan New York that specializes in small-scale furniture. She estimates the number of smaller offerings has grown by about a third over the past year.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, Nancy Keates (03/21/2008)
Mortgage Rates Drop Below 6%
According to Freddie Mac’s data, mortgage rates have dropped back below 6 percent after spending more than a month above that threshold. Thanks to the Federal Reserve’s aggressive moves to insulate the U.S. economy by slashing borrowing costs, 30-year fixed home loans averaged 5.87 in the latest numbers.
That compares to 6.13 percent this time last week and represents the first time since mid-February that the benchmark interest rate has been less than 6 percent.
“Slowing consumer spending and weak employment conditions are among the concerns behind the Fed’s decision to lower the target federal funds rate,” says Freddie Mac chief economist Frank Nothaft.
Source: Tulsa World (Okla.) (03/21/08)
How to Help the Kids Buy First Home
Helping the kids buy a first home is a time-honored tradition that has become even more significant as home prices rise and incomes flatten.
Here are three ways parents can help their children:
Cash. For parents with the means, cash is clean and easy. An individual can give $12,000 a year to a recipient without having to pay a tax on the gift. Therefore, a couple could give an adult child and the child’s spouse a total of $48,000 in one year. To keep things simple, the gift is best given well in advance of the mortgage application.
Cosigning or otherwise jointly investing in the property. This can work for parents of more limited means or those who want to be paid back. The biggest risk is that the offspring will be unable to meet their obligations and it will affect the parent’s credit rating.
Knowledge and hard work are worth gold. Parents who can’t afford to help financially may be able to provide experience and even some sweat equity to help the kids make a smart housing choice.
Source: Market Watch (03/21/08)
Practitioners Dig Up New Revenue
Rather than flee the real estate industry due to the housing downturn, experts say real estate practitioners should use their skills and experience to offer services outside of buying and selling homes to supplement their incomes.
They could write about the real estate market for newspapers and blogs; sell advertising space on a neighborhood Web site, newsletter, or blog that they create to local businesses; become a licensed appraiser; or provide tours of the local area to visitors.
Additionally, practitioners can supplement their income by helping businesses with search engine marketing, translating their Web sites and marketing materials to target international buyers, and subleasing office space for meetings and other events.
Finally, practitioners could serve as consultants to banks looking to sell foreclosed properties, rental firms interested in filling vacant units, and consumers preparing to relocate.
Source: Realty Times, Bill Miles (03/19/08)
FBI Examining 17 Lenders
The FBI is currently investigating 17 firms involved in the mortgage lending industry, bureau officials told Reuters News in an exclusive interview. The bureau had previously acknowledged it was investigating 16 firms. Officials say the criminal probe could take years to complete.
The FBI has assigned 100 agents to investigate corporate fraud aspects of the housing crisis, including subprime lending and insider trading. Another 150 are looking at related securities fraud, and 153 are looking at loan originations, says Neil Power, economic crimes unit chief of the FBI’s financial crimes section.
The majority of cases are in New York and California, Powers says.
The opportunities for fraud existed all along the chain from mortgage origination to the investors in mortgage-backed securities. But the problems begin in loan applications that required minimal or no documentation, the officials said.
“That’s the start of the fraud right there,” said Mike Cuff, a supervisory special agent in the economic crimes unit.
Source: Reuters News, Randall Mikkelsen (03/18/08)
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