Foreclosures on the Rise in 2009
Foreclosures on the Rise in 2009
October 27, 2009, USA TODAY
Home foreclosures increased 22.5% in third quarter 2009 vs. third quarter 2008. This interactive shows the percentage of housing units that received at least one foreclosure filing during the quarter, the total number of housing units with filings and the percentage change in filings from the previous year. The data was provided by RealtyTrac, an online real estate marketplace that tracks foreclosures. The interactive was updated Oct. 23, 2009 and will be updated quarterly.
Home Prices in 20 U.S. Cities Rise for Third Month
October 27, 2009, Bloomberg News
Home prices in 20 U.S. cities rose in August for a third consecutive month, bolstering the case that an economic recovery is at hand. The S&P/Case-Shiller home-price index climbed 1 percent from the prior month, seasonally adjusted, after a 1.2 percent increase in July, the group said today in New York. From a year earlier, the gauge fell 11.3 percent, less than forecast. Rising home sales, due in part to government programs including the first-time buyer credit and efforts to lower borrowing costs, have helped stem the slump in property values that precipitated the worst recession since the 1930s.
Housing Prices May Fall Further
October 27, 2009, Forbes
Over the past few months, there have been suggestions that the U.S. housing market might finally be bottoming out. Since July, the decline in sales of both new and existing homes has moderated. Moreover, over the past three months, there has been a very modest increase in home prices at the national level as measured by the 20-city S&P/Case-Shiller home price index. However, the high inventory of unsold homes, continuing foreclosures, and double-digit unemployment could mean that housing prices have further to fall.
Nelson Says Senate to Extend, Reduce Homebuyer Credit
October 27, 2009, Bloomberg News
Senate leaders are negotiating to extend and gradually reduce an $8,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers through 2010, Senator Bill Nelson of Florida said. “We should be able to extend that later this week,” Nelson, a Democrat, told reporters traveling today with President Barack Obama on Air Force One to a speech in Jacksonville, Florida. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus of Montana, both Democrats, may seek to add the homebuyers extension to legislation extending unemployment benefits that may be debated as early as this week, according to Regan Lachapelle, an aide to Reid.