Twin Cities Real Estate News
Today's Investing Game Plan
We are in the midst of tough real estate recession; the worst this country has seen in decades. Real estate prices in some areas have fallen to the point where many people are paying more on a mortgage than their property is actually worth!
Timing the Bottom of the Market
In just the past few weeks we have seen continued gyrations in the stock and bond markets. We’ve seen a Federal Reserve that continues to chase the snowball downhill and one that will continue to cut rates in the weeks and months ahead because it waited too long to act. We’ve seen mortgage rates on 30 year fixed rate loans reach 5.25% before spiking back to 5.75% within 24 hours. And we continue to see many real estate investors on the sidelines wondering what to do in this marketplace. “How low will she go?” they ponder.
Buying a Home: Property Wishlist
While your opinions on the type of home you want to own may change during the home buying process, this easy checklist can help you decide what you want in your dream home and reduce the time you spend viewing homes.
Buying a Home: Finding the Perfect Neighborhood
The neighborhood you choose can have a big impact on your lifestyle—safety, available amenities, and convenience all play their part.
Auction Euphoria
As real estate buying opportunities continue to flood the horizon, beware not to get caught up in the hoopla and hype that accompany auctions. A very successful auction was recently held in the Twin Cities where over 350 houses were auctioned off to an anxious crowd of bidding investors.
FED Cut Positive for Market
The Federal Reserve's cut of 50 basis points last week will prove to be the first of a series of rate cuts in my opinion. With each cut the consumer (as well as corporate America) will gain a positive sense of their own economic future. Over a period of months this will begin spilling back into the housing market and we will all see clear signs of a real estate turnaround.
Let My People Go
The Federal Reserve continues to keep the housing market in bondage with its sustained High Interest Rate policy. The longer they delay in cutting rates the more adjustable rate mortgages will reset to higher payments, the more foreclosures we will see, the less consumers will spend, the more job layoffs we'll see and the greater chance we will experience an economic recession.
Price Declines Slowing According to NAR Report
With all the negative news on housing and Wall Street lately, one would expect the sky to be falling. Not so. Although home prices continue to slip lower, the amount of the decline is very small on a national average basis.
