http://jeffreyspivey.cbvegas.com/blog/archive_201005/sort_entrydatetime-desc/ Recently the Case-Shiller numbers for March were released. The low-tier index (under $125,000) continues to be show an apparent improvement. The middle-tier ($125,000 to $192,000) and the high-tier (over $192,000) continues to be flat or slightly downward bias. The Radar Logic RPX demonstrates a similar pattern. Median indices, which we can calculate more currently, demonstrate continued flattening. Who knows how much of this was market held up by the tax credit that expired in April. In the Las Vegas market, we have had so many investors purchasing that they don't really factor in to the tax credit portion unless they planned to flip. Thirty-six percent of the MLS single family sales from January to April were closed with cash. Another twenty-four percent was conventionally financed, which requires a higher downpayment than FHA loans. FHA composed 31% of the financing on sales so that is really the proportion that may have needed the tax credit carrot to make their deals make sense. It may be a while to see the effects of the tax credit and it will also be hard to disentangle. Anecdotally, we are personally seeing even greater investor traffic, especially from foreign buyers. This may offset the weaker demand from the tax credit type buyers. In addition, banks have never released as many REO's as they said they would. Anyhow its hard to ignore 1990's pricing and often 10+ cap rates on rentals.  Source: Standard & Poors.  http://jeffreyspivey.cbvegas.com/blog/870/pricing-update-case-shiller-&-rpx/ Thu, 27 May 2010 02:02:29 -0800 While most of us thought mortgage interest rates would head higher after the Fed completed its program of buying MBS, rates have actually gone in the opposite direction. Well, our expectation was logical but what we did not expect was the Sovereign problems in Europe. A flight of monies out of European bonds has found itself in U.S treasuries. The mortgage market, while subject to it's own considerations such as risk pricing and supply/demand, is linked to treasuries in a second hand way. The result is a decline in mortage rates.This is good for homebuyers in this market. While the tax credit for first-time and move-up buyers has ended, low rates, combined with 1995-2000 era pricing, makes housing look more attractive. http://jeffreyspivey.cbvegas.com/blog/862/mortgage-interest-rates/ Mon, 24 May 2010 05:55:35 -0800