Given the influx of absentee property owners, it is essential now more than any other time for people looking for a rental home to use the services of a professional residential property management service. The 2008 real estate market crash left many property owners owing more than what the property is worth; it is now common to hear of investment property owners choosing to walk away from their investment and stop paying the mortgage.
Fears of analysts were confirmed when Case Shiller Index was released last week. As expected by them the decline in prices is weakening homebuyers. According to Bloomberg, residential real estate values dropped the most in January in more than a year, contributing to the risk that US home sales would keep slowing further. The Standard & Poor’s-Shiller Index of property values in 20 US cities fell 3.1 per cent since January 2010, which is by far the biggest year-over-year drop since December 2009.
Home prices are falling throughout the country, but the area around Reno, Nevada seems to have been particularly hard hit, according to sales and pricing information coming out for the final quarter of 2010. The impetus here seems to be directly from short-sale homes, as well as a significant influx of bank-owned homes on the market. The number of properties listed for incredibly low prices is forcing the average price down, as well, and having an effect across the entire real estate scene.
A recent survey of national realtors has found that a high percentage of them have had sales fall through because of home appraisals coming in too low. Often, the appraisal actually came in below the price that a buyer was willing to pay. Even if those low appraisals did not cancel the sale outright, many realtors have found that they have to renegotiate contracts because of it. Those low appraisal rates have also affected more than just realtors – builders have had sales lost because of the appraisals. Why are appraisals coming in so low, though?
A recent survey of national realtors has found that a high percentage of them have had sales fall through because of home appraisals coming in too low. Often, the appraisal actually came in below the price that a buyer was willing to pay. Even if those low appraisals did not cancel the sale outright, many realtors have found that they have to renegotiate contracts because of it. Those low appraisal rates have also affected more than just realtors – builders have had sales lost because of the appraisals. Why are appraisals coming in so low, though?
Even as the housing bubble was beginning to inflate, real estate prices in the US showed a downward trend last week. Prices in at least 14 major US metros have fallen sharply to the 2003 levels. According to industry experts, this discouraging trend has the tendency to slow down the US economy while it has shown strength in other sectors. The worst affected regions include Las Vegas, Cleveland and Detroit. Analysts say prices are at or near 10-year lows in Denver, Atlanta, Chicago and Minneapolis.
The US housing market has certainly seen better days. Prices are down all across the country, and the number of first-time buyers actually entering the market has plummeted. The beginning of 2011 actually marked the lowest percentage of first-time buyers entering the market since surveys were first conducted – only 29% of the market was made up of first-time buyers. That percentage has increased to 34% in recent months, but there is still a long way to go.
Scams abound in almost every industry in the nation. However, it seems that real estate scams are increasingly common, particularly in the online environment. The website in question is Craigslist, a “want ad” type of site, where people are allowed to post everything from jobs to furniture for sale. They can also post homes for sale if they like. The problem here is that many of these listings are not what they seem, and potential buyers are warned to be very careful using this site to find a home to buy.
While the nation might currently have one of the lowest rates ever recorded for new home construction, that does not mean that the housing market is dead. More and more existing homes are beginning to sell, which is most certainly a sign that things might be on the mend. Of course, that doesn’t mean that everything is coming up roses.
Housing and Urban Development (HUD) provides rental assistance. It is provided mostly through its different rental programs. Through the public housing program, HUD offers rental assistance to the disabled, elderly and low income families. HUD grants are given to local housing agencies for the public housing program. The US has around 3,300 housing agencies that provide cover to about 1.2 million households.
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