Archive for February 11th, 2008
I’m Feelin Lucky
Since November when I launched The Brainerd Real Estate Blog I have been on a ever going search to find material that is worth writing and posting about in the Brainerd Area. Where I have been very lucky is that I have the privilege of being able to talk and learn from a couple of the nations best real estate bloggers.
Ms. Teresa Boardman and the team at Lakeplace.com and Landbin.com have taken may hours out of their busy days and nights to help me with getting started with a strategy and given me insider tricks and tips that have made my blog a faster than normal growing real estate blog. Having a chance to learn from 2 of the best in the busines is a true asset for me as a newcomer. I will take the pointers anytime from those who have a proven ability to seperate themselves from the crowd and rise to the top. If you want to see professionals at work take a trip to The St. Paul Blog and Pine Needle Lawn these folks have a real good sense of what readers want and have grown to expect. Building a national audience and country wide readership is not an easy thing to do believe me. So for a small market man like me to get the help and wisdom from the experts like them I’m feelin awful lucky. Thanks again!!
The Word
But if you focus on the bigger economic picture, you might be surprised at some of the good news that’s lurking out there — especially the forward-looking factors.
On the negative side, you probably know the numbers: New homes sales down 4.7 percent in the latest month. Median home resale prices down 1.8 percent for the full year of 2007 — the first times prices have dropped on a national basis since 1968. Foreclosure filings up 75 percent for the year, leaving dozens of major markets clogged with bank-owned real estate for sale at depressed markets.
What about the positives? Some of them are probably in the category of “news you never heard about because it never got reported.”
For example: The most comprehensive national index measuring home price movements, covering almost 7,500 Zip codes and 662 counties in all 50 states and the District of Columbia — the First American-Corelogic Index — found prices flat or positive in 31 of the 50 states.
The national numbers are being dragged down primarily by sizable declines in a couple of big states: California and Florida, along with Arizona, Nevada and — here’s a little surprise — Rhode Island.
Among the 60 percent of states with positive performance are the current top performers of the pack: Texas, Utah, New Mexico, the Carolinas and Montana.
Then there are what we call the forward-looking factors: Mortgage interest rates continue to hover just above 40-year lows and the Federal Reserve keeps pushing down short term rates — twice this month alone.
The economic stimulus package coming from Washington by mid February should be another plus: It promises to raise loan limits for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and FHA well above $600,000 — maybe even higher than $700,000.
According to estimates from the National Association of Realtors, pushing the limits to just $625,000 could stimulate 350,000 more home sales this year alone — and lead to $44 billion in new economic activity — all with no expenditure of
