Steve Harney has posted about the importance of homeownership often on this blog. He sees it as part of the American Dream and feels that there is a value in owning your own home that far transcends any economic advantages. He has done a great job of making his case. However, we want to look at […]
The current administration continues to attempt a myriad of policies aimed at bringing about a recovery in the housing industry. It is not their belief in the importance of homeownership that drives this policy. This administration has openly questioned whether the government should continue to support homeownership as an American ideal. Every policy had one […]
We want to wish everyone a happy holiday weekend. Many of you will be celebrating right in your own backyard. Take a moment to realize what that means to you, your family and your friends. Let us never lose sight of the fact that homeownership is, and always will be, a major part of the […]
A message from Steve Harney: The short term fixes used to bolster the real estate market (the purchase of mortgage-backed-securities and homebuyer tax credits) proved to be just that: short term fixes. Everyone now seems to feel that the only true solutions to the challenges in housing are the creation of jobs and the increase […]
Holy Cow! Have you taken a look at where interest rates are these days??? There are Ten Year Mortgages in the 3.75% range for heaven’s sake! Yes, 3.75%!!! What are some of the issues to consider as you (and all of America) contemplates a refinance? 1. Does it make financial sense? If you are considering […]
Reuters report 9/1: “It is not high on anyone’s list that we have heard. We have not heard Congress talking about renewing it.” – HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan regarding a possible renewal of the homebuyer tax credit. ORIGINAL POST Rumors are running wild that the administration is considering a new tax credit for homebuyers. We don’t want […]
MacroMarkets has assembled a very distinguished panel of over 100 economists, investment strategists, and housing market analysts who are surveyed every month regarding their 5-year expectations for future home prices in the U.S. The report is the Home Price Expectations Survey. Their purpose for this undertaking? We are hopeful that this survey, and our panelists, will […]
You may believe that selling your home will be impossible after all the news you have heard recently. You may feel powerless to the process. What could YOU possibly do to turn this housing market around? There is no doubt that today’s real estate market is extremely difficult to navigate. However, we want you to […]
It’s been hard to fault home buyers who haven’t rushed to buy a home, now that there is no longer any Federal Tax Credit. I mean, if you read this blog with any consistency, we all know that home prices are going to continue to tumble, and there is no indication of interest rates climbing […]
CNBC report 9/2: “Pending sales of previously owned U.S. homes rose unexpectedly in July … suggesting a tax credit-related housing market decline was close to bottoming.” ORIGINAL POST The new housing numbers have definitely been a major news story over the last 48 hours. The Dow dropped over 100 points on the announcement of July’s existing […]
We want to begin by saying there were absolutely no surprises in this month’s National Association of Realtors Existing Home Sales Report. Experts were calling for a dramatic fall off in volume and a substantial increase in month’s supply of inventory. Everyone now realizes that the tax credit actually pulled more demand forward than it […]
One of the greatest threats to a housing recovery is the months’ supply of housing inventory available for sale. A normal market would have between 5-6 months inventory. We currently have 8.9 months of inventory and most experts believe that number will increase rather dramatically when the National Association of Realtors’ August Existing Housing Report […]
We attempt to explain the current real estate market both simply and effectively. We either create or search for great visuals or graphs that do just that. We have been trying to help our readers realize that real estate is just like any other industry: pricing will be determined by the theory of ‘supply and […]
Here are a few reports and surveys you may find interesting.-The KCM Crew Trulia’s American Dream Survey Zillow’s Homeowner Confidence Survey RealtyTrac’s August Foreclosure Report NAR’s Study: Social Benefits of Homeownership and Stable Housing .
We have been discussing home prices in this blog for over a year. The principle of ‘supply and demand’ has been our rallying cry for the entire duration. Pricing of any item is determined by the number of items for sale in ratio to the number of purchasers looking to buy that item. Here is […]
While we still see a tightening of mortgage underwriting guidelines for many loan programs, or even an increase in costs associated with the FHA loan program, there has emerged an increased appetite for Jumbo Mortgages in the marketplace. Today, I’d like to discuss the “What?”, “Why?” and “How It Affects You?” of the evolving landscape. […]
We are building a home for real estate information here at the KCM Blog. Our job is to accurately reflect what is taking place in the residential housing market in this country. The entire team takes this job very seriously. With the market evolving so rapidly, it has become a daunting task. We looked at […]
The biggest question looming over the economy overall and real estate specifically is whether or not we will experience a double dip. What exactly is a double dip? Robert Hall, chairman of the National Bureau of Economic Research, a group of academic economists that officially declares the starts and ends of recessions, says: “A double […]
I believe very strongly in the importance of homeownership in this country. A home is much more than just a financial investment. It is a parents’ investment in their children. It is a family’s investment in their community. It is the people’s investment in America. I have written extensively on the fact that real estate […]
We know how busy everyone is. For that reason, here are our 5 most popular blog posts from the last 30 days (just in case you missed any of them). Have a great weekend! – The KCM Crew 5 Reasons Why You Should Buy a Home Today What Will My House Be Worth Next Month? […]
Here at the KCM Blog we attempt to bring clarity to a very confusing real estate market. There is news breaking every day and one report seems to contradict another. Today, we are going to take all the news available and put into a single graph. How do we propose to do that? By cheating […]
The original thinking was that the economy wouldn’t come back until there was a recovery in the housing market. It now seems that most experts are saying that there will be no recovery in the housing sector until our economy comes back. More specifically not until we begin creating jobs. But, when will that actually […]
You have decided to sell your home. You realize that, in this market, you need the skills of a real estate professional. You are about to start interviewing. You know what your goals are: Get the house sold Get the best price possible Sell the house in a certain timeframe Sell it with the least […]
Last week, HUD announced their intention to change their insurance premiums, in order to raise HUD’s own reserves to cover anticipated losses and fund their operations. Let’s look at the impact on today’s home buyer, resulting from the changes which will go into effect on September 7th. The “spin” is that they are trying to […]
People often ask us how they should determine with whom they should list their house. Aren’t real estate agents really all the same? Don’t they all do the same thing? Shouldn’t I just hire the one that charges me the lowest commission rate? The answer to each of these questions is NO! In any other […]
