It seems like everyday there is more housing news released….that conflicts with the news from the previous day…

Who are you to believe?

Simple, yourself. You need to learn how to be your own best counsel, your own expert. Dare I suggest that you learn to be your own ‘Guru’.

Helping you do just that is the primary aim of this blog. We want YOU to have the information….all the information….so, that you be prepared for what is happening how and what will happen next.

You need to gather the information and decide for yourself what is really happening in the housing markets. Don’t discount or underestimate how much YOU know. You are in the ‘field’ everyday. You are working with real buyers and sellers who will or won’t buy. You know what is or isn’t selling. Remember, even the best source of information is going to report trailing information. In other words, they can only base their reporting on what HAS happened. You need to learn to study your local market and know the sales statistics cold. That information is what IS happening NOW. Learn to trust your instincts and experiences.

As you know, there was a report from the NAR that really shook the markets today…the headline was..’Historic Increase In Housing Sales’.

Lets look into these claims a little further..as unbiased as we can. (I have included a great video from CNBC’s Diana Olick.)

Here were the NAR’s talking points:

* Sales increased 23.5% year over year..
* Prices down 7.1%
* National inventory at 2 and half year low.

What does all of this mean? Who are the buyers for these homes?

Please use your personal experience and think about the answer to those questions…

Well, as you very well know the buyers were almost exclusively investors and first time buyers. What is also interesting is that large institutional investors are indeed buying ‘bulk’ from the banks. We have heard from HREU students in Arizona that many properties are selling BEFORE the actual foreclosure auction and for less than the opening bid amount. (its questionable if doing this is legal and I suspect that we will hear more about this soon).

Bottom line, an increase in homes sales is (obviously) great. But, when a majority of the buyers were ‘investors’ who will simply put the homes back for sale…are we really getting anywhere?

Please keep in mind that many investors are buying and then ‘flipping’ shortly after closing. If a home sold to an investor and then resold to an end user buyer…the NAR stats counts that as TWO SALES.  What would the total number of sales really be if the ‘investor flippers’ were not included in the NAR’s numbers…. In other words, what are the real sales numbers…how many end user, real buyers are buying?

Makes you go hmmmmmmmm……doesn’t it. Agents, in YOUR market what are you seeing? Who are the buyers YOU are working with…..and perhaps more importantly…who are the buyers buying the Short Sales and REOs….?

(investors?)

Lets not forget the realities of this market..as we shared with you last week:

1) 14.4% of ALL mortgages delinquent (or homes already in foreclosure) in the US. Read that again and ponder how significant that really is…14.4% of ALL homeowners with a mortgage are behind or already IN foreclosure. That is a historic record.

2) Ready for this….PRIME borrowers…as in NOT SUB-PRIME….borrowers are now the leading edge of this epic housing mess. 33% of all delinquencies (and those already in foreclosure) are PRIME.

Agents: If you are ready to become a REO listing agent…KNOW THIS…its not too late for you. Listen to this 90 minute How-To List REOs Teleconference (or webinar). You are about to learn exactly what you must do now to become a REO listing agent. Listen to replay NOW.

3) Next fun fact: 144% INCREASE in FHA delinquencies year over year. Anyone want to place any bets on the long term viability of the FHA in its current incarnation? Anyone?

4) Saved the most staggering stat for last…get ready…The total number of delinquent (and in foreclosure) homeowner/ borrowers is GREATER than the total number of homes for sale. Lets put this into perspective: There are currently around 4,000,000 homes for sale in the country. Thus, there are MORE THAN 4,000,000 homes delinquent or already in foreclosure. Rounding this out a bit, many studies have estimated the total number of homes in the US that are foreclosure bound (if the homeowner doesn’t wise up and sell the home via a short sale) is 13,000,000 to 15,000,000.

Agents, HREU students…is there ANY doubt in your minds that you simply MUST be listing and selling short sales and learning how to become a REO listing agent. In most markets across the country short sales and REOs ARE the market.

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