Glut of Unsold Homes: Metro Supply Swells Near-record Level as Foreclosures Rise

Rocky Mountain News ^ | 4/07/2006 | By John Rebchook

[ex-Texan]

Get ready people. Inventories of unsold homes are rising across America. The economic law of supply and demand is about to kick in. Housing prices will soon begin to fall if they have not fallen already. Helpful Graphs and Charts? Please ignore the obnoxious personal attacks against me in the KEY WORDS section. The people are just like vandals with spray cans. Don't believe me? Look at the evidence and see for yourself: Read More Reports? By the way, the bursting housing bubble is a world wide phenomenon. It is not simply confined to the U.S. and Canada.

[CindyDawg]

I know a lot of people that must work two jobs each to maintain their lifestyle. You just can't do that forever.

[Gondring]

Housing prices will soon begin to fall if they have not fallen already.

I can only hope this is true.

[KellyAdmirer]

Getting adjustable-rate mortgages two or three years ago when rates obviously were bottoming was a huge, classic mistake.

[fahrenheit451]

I'm seeing more and more 'for sale' signs each day on my drive home from work.
The first wave is already bailing...

[NaughtiusMaximus]

Real estate markets climb gradually.

But they come down with a "bump."

[Vince Ferrer]

This is interesting for the Denver market, as I thought it was just starting to really recover from the dot com bust. I would have expected this statistic three years ago, when I saw homes for sale for 6-9 months, and then taken back off the market.

[Nathan Zachary]

Foreclosures in the first quarter are hovering near 4,800, about 31 percent higher than a year ago.

That's not a good sign. Rising mortgage rates, aggressive refinancing in which owners pulled out all or most of their equity, and homes bought with no down payments are driving foreclosures,

More BAD signs. Too much debt.

He said many buyers of homes priced under $300,000 who locked in adjustable rate mortgages within the past few years are finding their monthly payments rising by $100 or $200.

That's why people are refinacing, drowning in debt. They can't pay the bills.

"When they go to sell the home, they're finding that their home is worth less than their mortgage," he said.

That's the killer. If this trend spreads, look out! The bubble is going to bust. Once interest shoots up, it's all over.

Then we will see how good for America all these illegals are when people look for that second job to keep the mortgage paid.

[dufekin]

How's the market going to be a year or two from now--in energy-rich Oklahoma? I should have enough money then to escape the apartment lifestyle and buy a home, depending upon just how much Uncle Sam sets me back.

[Tamar1973]

I'm seeing more and more 'for sale' signs each day on my drive home from work.

Not in my part of California.

[CindyDawg]

Not here, either. Contractors can't build them fast enough.

[Nathan Zachary]

" I can only hope this is true."

It will be great if you are looking to buy. One mans misfortune is another man's fortune. I'd wait and see how this shakes out for a while. If things don't improve during the summer, there will be desperate sellers in the fall.

That rising interest is scary if you are financing. Keep an eye on that. I remember in the 80's where it hit 19%. Increasing bankruptcies will drive that up fast.

[Cementjungle]

Getting adjustable-rate mortgages two or three years ago when rates obviously were bottoming was a huge, classic mistake.

Certainly, at least if you plan to hold the investment for more than a few years.

[Loud Mime]

If we have an amnesty for illegals, housing prices will never come down.

[ex-Texan]

I agree with you 100%. Allan Greenspan went too far when the personally recommended people take advantage of ARM loans to purchase overpriced houses. His comments in 2003 also helped inflate the bubble further and delayed a more gentle correction. The bursting bubble and economic fall out may be blamed on Greenspan.

Here is a better link to view those obnxoius personal attacks on my real estate posts.

[gogeo]

BS. They aren't rising across America. Go sell your Chicken Little routine somewhere else.

[Danette]

I really look forward to your posts, ex-Texan. You get hammered pretty bad, but I think you're right on with all the reports.

I sold and bought almost two years ago. I have about 6 buying and selling forums in my bookmarks that I visit everyday still...they're so addicting. People are hurting with selling. It's doom and gloom. I've chatted with people all across the US that have homes on the market and nothing is moving.

I have no stakes in the selling and buying game. I just wanted to let you know that I enjoy your posts and I believe you're reporting exactly what I'm seeing.

[ex-Texan]

Were you the vandal that posted personal attacks in the KEY WORDS section tonight?

[Liberty Valance]

r-e-g-i-o-n-a-l
mayhaps.

[Tamar1973]

They aren't rising across America.

It all depends on what percentage of a particular market took out ARM's which are poised to balloon now. The higher the % of ARM's, the higher likelihood of future foreclosures, which might very well put a glut on some real estate markets and drive prices down for the rest of us.