Bank-owned homes being held off the market

Here is an interesting article from the Idaho Business Review. There are currently 462 total REO's on the MLS,63 in Ada County and 133 in Canyon County. These are much lower than what we had on the market last year.

by Brad Carlson Idaho Business Review Published: April 18,2012 Time posted: 9:52 am

Some market watchers say banks aren’t immediately listing foreclosed homes for sale, in part to keep the market from being flooded with distressed properties. The number of bank-owned homes listed for sale through southwest Idaho’s multiple listing service dropped 17.3 percent from February 1 through the end of March, Idaho Data Providers said in a report. Listings of bank “real estate owned” homes, or REOs, dropped from 1,176 to 973 during the period. “This fact is worth mentioning since foreclosure sales are still occurring, and the vast majority of properties are going back to the lender, but there haven’t been that many REO sales to account for the decline,” Idaho Data Providers President Charlie Nate said in the report. “This is evidence that lenders are holding REOs off the market and probably renting them for a while to help keep the market stable.” The number of REOs listed for sale in the database of the Boise-based Intermountain MLS is short of the number of properties going back to banks in foreclosure actions, Nate said in an interview. His company tracks default and foreclosure filings as well as listings of distressed properties for sale. “They are doing that so they don’t further depress the market,” Nate said. “It’s just kind of a controlled thing.” Lance Churchill is a Meridian-based attorney who owns Frontline Realty, which buys and sells investment real estate. The company mainly handles residential properties, buying them at foreclosure auctions. Comparison of bank “real estate owned” homes to short sales listed for sale in the Boise-based Intermountain MLS. In a short sale, the lender agrees to accept a price below what is owed. Courtesy Idaho Data Providers. Banks continue to take back houses through foreclosure but are holding some off the market, Churchill said. Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and lenders have started programs in which they rent bank-owned homes to residents instead of selling the homes immediately, which helps keep the market from being flooded with REO properties, Churchill said. Fannie and Freddie are government-sponsored enterprises that buy mortgages from lenders. “I’ve certainly noticed the REOs I handle are down,” said Remax Capital City Realtor Blake Mayes, who concentrates on REOs. “Certainly for me, inventory is down from what it was last year.” One Boise-area bank that is not holding properties off the market is Bank of the Cascades. “Anything we have in Other Real Estate (Owned), we have listed for sale,” Bank of the Cascades Idaho Region President Mike Mooney said. “Our OREO numbers are down pretty dramatically in the last six months and continue to trend downward.” Bank of the Cascades owns fewer homes in part because the economy and demand for housing are improving, and low interest rates are helping buyers, Mooney said. “We don’t want to own property; we want to make loans,” he said. “It’s definitely getting better.” The Iron Eagle Realty Team's mission is to assist you, our client, in the sale and acquisition of real estate properties in the state of Idaho, specifically the Boise Idaho Real Estate Market. Whether you are buying or selling a home, whether it is a foreclosure, short sale or equity property, we handle our customers and clients with empathy and honest truths so they can make informed decisions as they advance in the process of buying and selling real estate that meet specific needs.

 

PS: We've Helped More Buyers and Sellers than 99.8% of any Local Realtor
Click Here to Search 24/7 for The Best Real Estate Deals in Boise!Click Here to Download Our Free "Selling Your Home" Pre-Listing Plan! Click Here to Pre-Qualify for a Loan Online!

Regards, Michael Hon, REALTOR®CEO, The Iron Eagle Realty Team
Associate Broker, Silvercreek Realty Group
Certified Short Sale Specialist®
Investment Property Consultant
Direct: 208.919.0458 Office: 208.939.9033 Fax: 208.514.1422
www.IronEagleRE.com Michael.Hon@IronEagleRE.com

Treasure Valley homebuilders bounce back

Nice article about home builders in the Boise and Eagle Idaho Real Estate Markets from the Idaho Statesman.

Scott Tutt, owner of Scott Tutt Building Co. in Boise, shrank his business during the recession to keep it alive. He built about a dozen homes a year, compared with 40 in 2006.

He watched longtime suppliers close, contractors leave the industry and employees in construction-related organizations lose their jobs.

“A lot of friends and businesses have gone away,” said Tutt, who builds 1,800- to 2,800-square-foot homes in the $200,000s.

They’re not going away anymore.

Tutt and other Treasure Valley builders say they’re building more homes than in previous years, and buildable lots are being snapped up.

Valley home starts climbed 55 percent in the first quarter from the same period last year, said Eric Allen, director of Idaho and Utah for Metrostudy, a real estate consulting firm that tracks new-home development nationwide. Consumers are feeling better and are taking advantage of the market conditions, Allen said.

“There definitely is a lot of momentum in the market right now,” he said. “Job growth is happening, interest rates are low, home prices are still low. We’re seeing a lot of buyers come out of rentals or doubled-up households.”

New-home sales for March were up 31 percent for Ada County and 46 percent in Canyon County from March 2011, according to data released Wednesday by the Intermountain Multiple Listing Service. January and February new-home sales also were up over the previous year. Median new-home prices were up by 6 percent to $201,558 in Ada County but down by 7 percent to $130,000 in Canyon County from the same month in 2011.

New-home permits in Boise, Meridian and Eagle have doubled in the first quarter this year compared with the same period last year, and more buyers are seeking houses in the $400,000 range, Schultz said.

“It shows that people are buying those less expensive houses and bumping people up as well,” she said.

Fewer than one in four builders who put up homes in 2005, the Valley’s last full housing-boom year, are still in business. About 770 builders pulled permits in Ada County in 2005, according to Bobbie Schultz, president of the Building Contractors Association of Southwest Idaho and owner of Jordan Homes in Eagle. Today about 170 companies are building.

James Clyde, of James Clyde Custom Homes in Eagle, said he took a break from building around 2005 because the market got crazy, with lot prices too high to be realistic. Clyde builds 2,400- to 6,000-square-foot homes up to the $800,000s, with most averaging $400,000 to $500,000.

“It got out of control,” he said. “I went fishing. I became a really good water skier for a year.”

He came back in 2006, building eight houses. The number of homes he’s built each year has gone up since, reaching 42 in 2011. Already this year, he’s worked on 35 more.

Ted Mason Signature Homes Inc. of Boise built 196 homes in the heyday of 2006, said home designer Rick Bradley. Last year the company built about 40 houses in the 1,600- to 1,900-square-foot range. So far this year, it has built or started about 30 more.

“We’re seeing a lot of different types of clients — first-time homebuyers, empty-nesters, single males,” he said.

Homes with unique designs and nicer finishes than most starter homes are popular with buyers today, builders say.

Membership in the Building Contractors Association, which had declined, has leveled off as old members call to get involved again and nonmembers ask how to join.

Buyers are turning to new homes because of the persistent shortage of existing homes for sale and because of good deals on new construction, said Kit Fitzgerald, an agent with Red Barn Real Estate and president of the Ada County Association of Realtors.

At the end of March, 2,794 new and used homes were listed for sale in the Valley, which is less than a four-month supply at current sales rates if no other homes were added. A six-month inventory is considered a healthy market.

Lebowitz said people are speculating about the effect bank-owned houses could have on recovery if they were put up for sale. But he said the increased level of demand and the rock-bottom inventory suggest the market can handle them.

The lack of supply means that multiple buyers are putting bids on homes. “It’s who can get it first,” Fitzgerald said.

Because of demand, prices are going up, and builders have stopped offering the concessions and discounts they had been forced to offer in the past few years, Fitzgerald said.

Increases in the cost of materials also are pushing home prices up, Clyde said.

“The time to buy is now,” Clyde said. “That’s what’s happening.”

The National Association of Home Builders forecasts that housing starts and sales will continue to climb for the next two years. The association also expects interest rates to be steady through 2013.

Local builders believe the Valley should see the same, but they have their eyes on the economy. “It will depend on job growth,” Tutt said.

Clyde said, “As long as the land prices don’t go skyrocketing again, we’ll continue to build.”

Sandra Forester: 377-6464

The Iron Eagle Realty Team's mission is to assist you, our client, in the sale and acquisition of real estate properties in the state of Idaho, specifically the Boise Idaho Real Estate Market. Whether you are buying or selling a home, whether it is a foreclosure, short sale or equity property, we handle our customers and clients with empathy and honest truths so they can make informed decisions as they advance in the process of buying and selling real estate that meet specific needs.

PS: We've Helped More Buyers and Sellers than 99.8% of any Local Realtor

Click Here to Search 24/7 for The Best Real Estate Deals in Boise!
Click Here to Download Our Free "Selling Your Home" Pre-Listing Plan!
Click Here to Pre-Qualify for a Loan Online!

Regards, Michael Hon, REALTOR®
CEO, The Iron Eagle Realty Team
Associate Broker, Silvercreek Realty Group
Certified Short Sale Specialist®
Investment Property Consultant
Direct: 208.919.0458 Office: 208.939.9033 Fax: 208.514.1422
www.IronEagleRE.com Michael.Hon@IronEagleRE.com

The Real Estate Myth That May Be Holding You Back

Here's a great Dave Ramsey article from his website.

The Real Estate Myth That May Be
Holding You Back

For those of you who have enough gazelle intensity to make bold money moves, we have a suggestion: Downsize your home and use the money you save to pay off debt, build an emergency fund or college fund, or invest for retirement.

"But Dave!" we can hear you say. "All our homes are underwater, and there's no one to buy them anyway!"

Well, we believe this is a myth, and it's holding lots of homeowners back from downsizing to more affordable homes.


Look Past the Headlines
Recent figures show that many homes are underwater, meaning the balance on their mortgages are more than the homes are worth. But far fewer homes are underwater than you might think. In the third quarter of last year, 22% of all homes with a mortgage were underwater. That's the number that gets the most media coverage.

But that number also means that more than three out of four homes are not underwater.

Dig a little further and you'll find that most underwater mortgages were found in five states: Nevada, Arizona, Florida, Michigan and Georgia. If you live in any of these states, the odds are less in your favor since on average, 41% of those homes have negative equity.

In the remaining 45 states, only 17% of homes with mortgages are underwater. Those numbers will vary even more from region to region—even neighborhood to neighborhood.

The moral of the story is that you shouldn't let negative reports about housing talk you out of selling your home if it will put you in a better financial position. Renting, or even buying a smaller, more affordable home, will free up cash you can use to pay off debt, save for emergencies, or build wealth for the future.


Face the Challenge With Expert Advice
The next challenge in downsizing is finding a buyer. While there's no doubt the housing market is still in a deep slump, existing home sales have picked up steam over the last few months. Thanks to low interest rates, bargain home prices and tons of people tired of putting off home buying, the trend is expected to continue.

But there's no reason to wade into this scene on your own. An experienced real estate agent will help you price your home to sell and save you money on your new home. One of Dave's real estate Endorsed Local Providers (ELPs) will work with you to make your downsize a success. Contact your ELP today.

The Iron Eagle Realty Team's mission is to assist you, our client, in the sale and acquisition of real estate properties in the state of Idaho, specifically the Boise Idaho Real Estate Market. Whether you are buying or selling a home, whether it is a foreclosure, short sale or equity property, we handle our customers and clients with empathy and honest truths so they can make informed decisions as they advance in the process of buying and selling real estate that meet specific needs.

PS: We've Helped More Buyers and Sellers than 99.8% of any Local Realtor

Click Here to Search 24/7 for The Best Real Estate Deals in Boise!
Click Here to Download Our Free "Selling Your Home" Pre-Listing Plan! 
Click Here to Pre-Qualify for a Loan Online!

Regards, Michael Hon, REALTOR®
CEO, The Iron Eagle Realty Team
Associate Broker, Silvercreek Realty Group
Certified Short Sale Specialist®
Investment Property Consultant
Direct: 208.919.0458 Office: 208.939.9033 Fax: 208.514.1422
www.IronEagleRE.com Michael.Hon@IronEagleRE.com