“IT REQUIRES A GREAT DEAL OF BOLDNESS AND A GREAT DEAL OF CAUTION TO MAKE A GREAT FORTUNE.” Ralph Waldo Emerson.
This might have been the title on the new report out by Realtor.com earlier this month based on survey data. The results of the survey are based on interviews conducted from March 6 to 8, 2009. A total of 1,005 interviews were completed.
The report showed two sides of America’s love affair with thier homes. One side is very worried about the state of the economy and foreclosures with 53% of Americans knowing someone faced by foreclosure. On the other side, about a quarter of adults plan to purchase a home in the next five years with more than half of them being first time homebuyers.
On the foreclosure side, unemployment is the main factor causing people to fear foreclosure. We’ve seen this in the Prescott and Prescott Valley markets with jobs lost in the real estate segment resulting in foreclosures and short sales by real estate and lending professionals.
More Americans are no longer viewing their homes as investments with over 60% looking at their homes as a place to live and not part of their portfolios.
More people think your home is a place to live not an investment
“It’s not all doom and gloom. We found Americans are optimistic about homeownership despite concerns,” said Move, Inc., CEO Steve Berkowitz. “They’re doing everything they can, from reducing discretionary spending to pay their mortgages, to planning to take advantage of the administration’s new program to stop foreclosures. They’re also working with lenders to modify loans. Even more impactful are numbers that show interest in home ownership is strong as nearly a quarter of all adults plan to buy a home in the next five years.”
Top see the whole report: REALTOR.com National Homeownership Survey
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What is the current climate regarding the seasoning issue and REOs. In the past, lenders usually required some signifcant amount of time to pass before a new owner could sell the property. With the glut of REOs in the lenders’ inventories, has there been any trend toward reducing the “seasoning” period in the case of REOs? Thanks
I think you are referring to the FHA rule about 90 day seasoning. It was waived last year for a year:
Waiver of Requirements of 24 CFR 203.37a (b)(2)
Pursuant to §7(q) of the Department of Housing and Urban Development Act (42 USC 3535(q) and 24 CFR 5.110, I hereby waive §203.37a(b)(2) of the regulations. That regulation prohibits a mortgage from being insured by FHA if the sale of the property that will be the security for the mortgage is within 90 days of acquisition by the seller. This waiver is limited to a sale within the 90-day period if the property is acquired through foreclosure, and is effective for a period of one year.
Here’s the full text:
http://portal.hud.gov/pls/portal/docs/PAGE/FHA_HOME/PRESS/PROPERTY_FLIPPING_WAIVER/PROPERTY%20FLIPPING%20WAIVER%20REQUEST.PDF